Joseph Shapiro

In Africa, in Asia, in Latin America, people with disabilities want to know: How can we learn from the Americans with Disabilities Act so we can get on the bus, get married, build a life.

Take a tour through New York and you'll see how the 25-year-old Americans with Disabilities Act is benefiting everyone.

Says one public defender: "The frightening thing about solitary is that when it erodes your ability to interact with other human beings, in turn that trauma is inflicted on your family members."

An investigation by NPR and The Marshall Project found that many states don't keep track of how many inmates are released directly from solitary confinement without any transition or supervision.

The Justice Department says police and courts in Ferguson, Mo., violated black residents' civil rights because officials saw them as a source of revenue. They were given excessive fines and fees.

Lawsuits filed in Ferguson and Jennings, Mo., seek justice for impoverished people who are jailed, sometimes for weeks, for not being able to pay what they owe the cities.

NPR got an advanced look at a civil rights lawsuit being filed that claims Ferguson, Mo., residents who can't afford to pay their court fines are illegally held in jail.

A new report on the growth of court fines and fees that are charged to often-impoverished offenders is focusing on another group that pays: their families.

Titled "When All Else Fails, Fining the Family," the study finds that impoverished people who go through the criminal justice system almost always ...

Massachusetts is one of a growing number of states that are putting new restrictions on the practice of restraining and secluding public school students.

The techniques — which have been blamed for harming students and in at least 20 deaths — were used more than 267,000 times in a recent ...

Losing your driver's license is a serious penalty, but often it's for nothing to do with unsafe driving. Without one, many who can't afford to pay the fines have a hard time finding or keeping a job.

Drive drunk or recklessly and the state can suspend your driver's license. But a number of officials worry that many suspensions are for lesser offenses, including unpaid tickets or even truancy.

There may be a model for court reform in Ferguson, Mo., in a legal settlement that happened quietly this week in Alabama.

The city of Montgomery agreed to new polices to avoid jailing people who say they are too poor to pay traffic tickets. In that Alabama city, as ...

The Campus SaVE Act clarifies the rights of victims of same-sex sexual attacks to go to local police, get referrals for health care and be guaranteed a fair hearing process.

In 2009, Henry Davis was charged with destruction of property after he scuffled with police officers and his blood dirtied their uniforms.

The council in the Missouri town met Tuesday for the first time since the shooting of Michael Brown. A plan introduced would address one source of tension: heavy collection of court fines and fees.

The protests in Ferguson are a response to the shooting death of Michael Brown, but the heavy use of court fines and fees helps explain why there's so much anger directed at local police.

A controversial practice to tie, hold down or seclude agitated students mostly impacts kids with disabilities. Schools say it's for safety, but opponents say it's dangerous and a civil rights issue.

The Michigan Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that local courts cannot charge indiscriminate fees to defendants.

U.S. lawmakers are feeling some urgency to solve the same problem: how to stop sending people to jail simply for failing to pay court fines and fees, often because they're too poor to afford them.

An exclusive state-by-state survey by NPR found that 49 states now allow or require criminal defendants to pay for their court-ordered electronic monitoring bracelets.