Lara Bazelon

@usflaw prof. mama. writer. lawyer. zealous advocate, always.
I think and write about crime, justice, love, work & family.

[Lara Bazelon @larabazelon]

"If Syed’s freedom is cause for celebration, it is also cause for shame. He was not released because the American criminal justice system is fair. He was released despite its brokenness and corruption."
My thoughts:
https://t.co/9L1bU1AHJj

[Justine B @jewstein3000]

@larabazelon @stschrader1 @ameliamagritte I’ve also torn apart Simon’s claims in his recent TV project that a police detective took his own life in a series of articles https://t.co/16mkfxleVX

[Robert Dunham @RDunhamDP]

Westmoreland DA accused of history of misconduct during murder appeal in case in which prosecution had sought the death penalty. https://t.co/6tAdMArHuT @TribLIVE @RichCholodofsky @larabazelon @padp_org @Atlantic_Ctr #Pennsylvania

[Lara Bazelon @larabazelon]

It’s illegal and flat out wrong. Discrimination always is.

[Megan McArdle @asymmetricinfo]

This is illegal. I am begging professors to consult the legal department before they write stuff like this. And I bet the deans are begging even harder.

[Lara Bazelon @larabazelon]

@CAgovernor has said that if the Board finds them suitable for release, he will make a final decision by Labor Day. Whether Lyle and Erik leave prison may turn on whether the legal system as evolved as much as society has when it comes to the question of their culpability.

[Lara Bazelon @larabazelon]

For @NYMag, I wrote about #MenendezBrothers parole hearing, which could be the trial they never had, and the chance that they could walk free as early as October. https://t.co/NmDdvLVMGQ

[Lara Bazelon @larabazelon]

The hearing will pit the brothers' account that they killed bc they believed they had no way out after Lyle threatening to expose his father's abuse against the DA's argument that they are "lying murderers" who shot their parents for money and no other reason.

[Lara Bazelon @larabazelon]

I might pick death bc at least then I’d get a lawyer post conviction and have a real chance at relief.

[Scott Greenfield @ScottGreenfield]

There is the fast(er) death penalty and the slow death penalty, life in prison without possibility of parole.

Both end in death. One just takes a little longer than the other.

[Lara Bazelon @larabazelon]

The hard truth is that we will never make a dent in mass incarceration until we release violent offenders who have been rehabilitated and no longer pose a danger. One year in a California prison costs more than $130,000. It is a waste: of taxpayer dollars and of human potential.

[Lara Bazelon @larabazelon]

For @nymag I wrote about the Menendez Brothers, the near-extinction of progressive prosecutors, and the impact on them and tens of thousands of violent offenders who no longer belong in prison. https://t.co/vKmjDRWP8z

[Lara Bazelon @larabazelon]

@Recap13187677 Oh I didn’t forget her; my other was that the last two seem like they are on their way out.

[Lara Bazelon @larabazelon]

1/5: If, as predicted, embattled DA incumbents lose in Los Angeles and Alameda counties (pop 10M+ collectively) that spells the end of the progressive prosecutor experiment in CA, at least for now. Some thoughts:

[Lara Bazelon @larabazelon]

5/5: This is a case to make client by client, story by story, in creative & collaborative ways with partners of all kinds: crime victims, family members, community orgs, law school clinics, PD offices, and yes, by trying (and failing) and continuing to try, with traditional DAs.

[Lara Bazelon @larabazelon]

4/5: Continuing to lock them up--at the cost of a Yale tuition + a Tesla per year (h/t @BrendonWoodsPD)--makes no sense from a public safety or a financial perspective. Nor does it serve many of the victims who get lumped together as retributionists above all else, but are not.

[Lara Bazelon @larabazelon]

@MaybellRomero Makes sense!

[Lara Bazelon @larabazelon]

The comments to this tweet tell you everything you need to know about the contagion of innocence-denying
and The Trump Effect. DNA proves someone else did it? They’re still guilty! False confessions from kids the police browbeat are common. Not a thing! It’s sad and ugly.

[Lara Bazelon @larabazelon]

When the Central Park 5 were falsely charged with raping a white woman, Trump took out ads calling for their execution. They were exonerated long ago but Trump continues. At the presid'l debate he said they pled guilty (no) and the victim died (also no). Now they're suing him.

[Lara Bazelon @larabazelon]

Wrongful convictions are a daily occurrence; the undercount is enormous. We have a system that is designed to produce & cement them. And wrongful sentences. Death sentences. Death in prison sentences. If the CP5 defamation suit works it's a small step but better than nothing.

[Lara Bazelon @larabazelon]

When the Central Park 5 were falsely charged with raping a white woman, Trump took out ads calling for their execution. They were exonerated long ago but Trump continues. At the presid'l debate he said they pled guilty (no) and the victim died (also no). Now they're suing him.

[Lara Bazelon @larabazelon]

You might ask, why call out this particular awfulness when Trump spews vitriol, lies, and bad faith as often as most of us breathe? Bc every time someone with a platform innocence-denies it sets back the vital and necessary reforms we need to get at the underlying problem.