2017 Azbee Awards of Excellence
Category
Print > Government Coverage > Upper Midwest
Awarded to
Wendy Davis, Contributing Writer; Lorelei Laird, Legal Affairs Writer; Kevin Davis, Assistant Managing Editor
Entry details
ABA Journal
Issue date (if applicable):
Publication name: ABA Journal
Publishing company: American Bar Association
Website home page: www.abajournal.com
Please describe the publication's mission and readership:
The ABA Journal is the flagship magazine of the American Bar Association, covering the trends, people and finances of the legal profession and the broader legal services industry.
As a leading voice in legal media, the Journal provides a forum online and in print for the free expression and interchange of ideas. The Journal reports objectively on timely, relevant issues of interest and importance to lawyers and the legal services industry. Readership includes the 400,000 members of the American Bar Association and readers of ABAJournal.com, which is available for free to the public.
Please describe the enterprising work that went into this entry and its significance or impact on readers:
The ABA Journal consistently publishes in-depth stories that examine the intersection of law and government. Three stories in particular addressed the administration of criminal justice. In “Language Barriers,” Wendy Davis exposes the woeful lack of foreign language interpreters in our nation’s courts, a problem with far-reaching implications for those charged with crimes who sometimes must wait days in jail for someone to speak on their behalf. These delays deny many due process in a timely manner, and places additional burdens on those who cannot speak for themselves. As the article notes, not only is the lack of interpreters in criminal courts a problem, but those who speak other languages often go blindly into civil proceedings they can’t understand. In “Bail’s Failings,” Lorelei Laird documents the inequities in how financial bail is imposed on criminal defendants. The system penalizes the poor, many of whom are detained on minor charges because they simply can’t afford bail. Lorelei put a human face to the story by tracking down a woman who missed work, could not care for her children and fell behind in her bills – all for charges that were eventually dismissed. In “Secret Snitches” Laird examines the Orange County, Calif., Sheriff’s Department’s long-standing practice of planting jailhouse informants to encourage snitching. This was a particularly challenging story because Laird encountered hostile and unwilling sources and had to review hundreds of pages of files. It paid off with a comprehensive story in which government prosecutors and police are spotlighted for questionable practices.
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ABA Journal
Category
Print > Government Coverage > Upper Midwest
Description
Publication name:
ABA Journal
Company:
American Bar Association
Winner Status
- National Gold Award
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