jails

Leo Cruz-Silva, 34, was arrested for public intoxication and died by apparent suicide after just one day at an ICE detention center in Ste. Genevieve. He is at least the 15th ICE detainee death nationwide, and the second in Missouri this year.

Judy Henderson spent 35 years in prison for a murder conviction, despite maintaining that she was innocent. Freed by the Missouri governor, Henderson's new autobiography “When the Light Finds Us,” documents the cruelty of the state's prisons and what it took her to keep going.

Former detainees are speaking out about what they say are poor conditions at an immigration detention center in eastern Kansas.

Critical questions remain about how a 50-year-old Kansas City, Kansas, man died in the Wyandotte County Jail more than two months ago. Charles Adair’s death has been ruled a homicide, but new details reveal striking similarities to the death of George Floyd in 2020.

In a federal filing, 10 women claim they suffered seizures due to the stifling heat in a facility once described as “a wood-fired pizza oven.” They say they were also forced to stand in raw sewage because of plumbing problems and were not given basic needs, like underwear or menstrual products.

Kansas City’s Transition Center has trained experts in conflict resolution, job training and wellness. Classes are giving hope to an increasing number of repeat offenders that they can make long-term changes and stay out of prison.

A Phelps County official said the $85 a night the federal government paid per detainee wasn't covering the increased costs of transportation and additional paperwork.

Timothy Beckmann was arrested in late September but had not been convicted of any crimes yet. He was found dead Monday at the Jackson County Detention Center, months after being ordered into the custody of the Department of Mental Health.

A lawsuit in San Francisco suggests forcing detainees to live in the dark could violate their constitutional rights. This issue is top of mind for residents who have followed the opening and closure of jails in St. Louis, where detainees can go years without seeing the sun.

Ozark County reached a contract with ICE to help the Trump administration carry out immigrant detentions and deportations. And the rural Missouri county is reaping the benefits by raising wages and hiring for new law enforcement positions.

On April 8, Kansas City voters will be asked whether to renew a sales tax that would fund the construction of a new city jail. Proponents call it a necessary public safety measure, while opponents argue it would fail to address the root causes of crime.

Kansas City voters soon will decide whether to renew the public safety sales tax. City leaders would use that money to build a new jail, but not everyone likes the idea.