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Category
Criminal Justice

Asking why and how, and what needs to be done.

Hell on Earth

Men incarcerated within Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola want relief from the prison’s extreme heat and overcrowding.
by Bernard Smith July 29, 2025 Updated January 18, 2026

Police

Regardless of how nervous this might make a kid, everything intensifies when your family is Black and big, white, tobacco-spitting cops approach your car in the middle of nowhere.
by Chuck Perkins July 29, 2025 Updated January 17, 2026

Unlocking opportunity:

It’s a familiar scenario. Potential employers see criminal histories and don’t hire. In New Orleans, improvements to the city’s “Ban the Box” ordinance could better challenge employment barriers. An Oct. 11 ballot amendment could expand that protection to include housing 
by Bernard Smith July 22, 2025 Updated January 18, 2026
Audience members line up to ask questions during a public discussion at Dillard University in New Orleans, La., where author and criminal justice reform advocate Calvin Duncan spoke about his new memoir The Jailhouse Lawyer. The event, hosted by Baldwin & Co. Books, drew a full crowd engaged in dialogue about Duncan’s journey from wrongful incarceration to becoming a self-taught legal expert. (Photo by Gus Bennett for The Lens)

From jailhouse lawyer to clerk of court candidate

Calvin Duncan’s unfinished mission for justice moves to a race for political office
by Bernard Smith July 15, 2025 Updated January 18, 2026
A four-panel collage of Calvin Duncan speaking animatedly during an interview with The Lens. He wears glasses, a checkered shirt, and a t-shirt, using expressive hand gestures as he shares his story. The background is clean and white, highlighting his emotion and energy in each frame.

From prison to justice

Calvin Duncan’s fight to free himself and others from a broken system — an interview by Bernard Smith.
by Calvin Duncan interviewed by Bernard Smith July 8, 2025 Updated January 17, 2026
Portrait of Calvin Duncan, author of "The Jailhouse Lawyer," gazing confidently at the camera with his hand resting under his chin. He wears a checkered shirt over a t-shirt, and the background is a clean, bright white, emphasizing his thoughtful expression.

‘We helped each other. We taught each other the law.’

Calvin Duncan, one of the finest inmate counsels to ever file a writ from the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola, releases his autobiography today, July 8. The Lens is honored to publish an excerpt from this highly anticipated book, The Jailhouse Lawyer.
by Calvin Duncan and Sophie Cull July 8, 2025 Updated January 17, 2026

‘I saw this coming.’

“The escapees didn’t run because the sheriff opened the door for holistic healing,” writes Henderson-Uloho, who taught decarceration classes in the jail. “They escaped because the people hired to provide custody, care, and control neglected their care and weaponized the control.”
by Maryam Henderson-Uloho July 2, 2025 Updated January 18, 2026
Hardy and Chantele Els, along with another rider, smile while holding their custom lowrider bicycles under the Claiborne Overpass during the Ride for Peace in New Orleans. Other participants with colorful bikes gather in the background, preparing to begin the community event.

‘Ride for Peace’ Brings New Orleanians together to interrupt violence and build community

Part protest, part celebration, the Ride for Peace Sopped at City Hall and pedaled through neighborhoods long affected by violence.
by Gus Bennett July 1, 2025 Updated January 18, 2026
black and white cctv cameras

NOPD is using images of you from more than 5,000 cameras across the city

“After years of FOIA requests and research, I know that NOPD is lying about their unlawful use of Project NOLA and facial-recognition software,” says the writer. The surveillance-camera issue is slated to be discussed at 10 a.m. today (Monday) at the City Council’s criminal-justice committee meeting.
by Matthew Wollenweber June 29, 2025 Updated January 18, 2026

Judge extends safeguards for Angola’s Farm Line for 90 more days

Order requires that officials monitor temperatures every 30 minutes. If heat index hits 88, Farm Line workers get regular breaks, ice, water, and shade.
by Bernard Smith June 24, 2025 Updated January 18, 2026

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The Lens fights to reveal and report on issues that impact the community and the region.

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The Lens fights to reveal and report on issues that impact the community and the region. Staunchly defending the public's right to know and deeply committed to sharing our knowledge with the community at large. We center human impact in all our work.
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Our reporting has more urgency than ever.


For more than a decade, we have reported on issues as well as public policy meant to address the needs of residents. The Lens seeks to focus on the inherent inequality that has created a multi-tiered system. We, at The Lens seek to uncover, illuminate, inform and take part in a forward-looking community. Join us.

 
 

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