Private prisons face many of the same obstacles as their public counterparts: drugs, violence, rowdy inmates or rowdy correctional officers. But their operations and how they manage these ubiquitous issues remain a black spot on the corrections ecosystem.

Private prisons have received increased scrutiny in the last few years, and Inspectors General and independent investigations have found more than a few questionable habits behind one of the government’s top contracting agents.

Though challenges have been brought successfully in four states where private prisons operate, federal public records law remains inapplicable to the operations of for-profit prisons.

Who’s overseeing America’s largest for-profit immigration detention operation? More than a few familiar faces, including former leaders at the Department of Defense, Department of Homeland Security, and Department of Justice.

FBI files on Ernest Hemingway document the author’s late-life feud with a New Zealand journalist in Cuba that apparently came close to causing an international incident - and led to the 55-year old Hemingway being challenged to a duel.

Russell Means was a seminal figure in Indigenous politics for decades, rising to the rank of National Director of the American Indian Movement (AIM) in 1970. His 178 page FBI file, however, only includes records regarding one incident Means was involved in - the 1973 occupation of Wounded Knee, a months-long standoff between AIM activists carrying small arms, and local and federal law enforcement packing 133,000 rounds of ammunition, armored personnel carriers, and .50 caliber machine guns.

To mark the 49th anniversary this week of the founding of the American Indian Movement (AIM), we’re taking a look at the FBI files of John Trudell, esteemed Santee Dakota poet, writer, speaker, and musician who was a key member of AIM, rising to the rank of National Chairman by the mid seventies. To the Bureau, Trudell was a renowned “agitator,” but within his community he was a motivator who inspired Indigenous peoples across the nation to strive for a better life.

A memo from Howard Zinn’s FBI file shows how the Bureau relied on third-party contractors and press coverage to avoid scrutiny of its surveillance of Vietnam protestors.

Since before even taking office, President Donald J. Trump has been the center of intense impeachment gossip. Cut through the speculation and read how it works from the source, the Department of Justice itself.

Two months after the deadline set via President Trump’s Executive Order 13777 directing the departments of the federal government to create Regulatory Reform Task Forces, many agencies have still not made public the members comprising the new groups. So who will be deciding which regulations make the cut? Right now, we don’t know.

The President wants to see fewer federal regulations and has issued multiple Executive Orders to that effect. But the one-in-two-out approach may leave rules with important intentions on the chopping block.

The best sexual assault policies adopted by this country’s law enforcement agencies illustrate a careful balancing act - Gardner, Massachusetts, with its victim-focused approach, a team of officers trained in handling sexual assault, and clear evidence collection policies, stands out. But until every police department in the country has these, the national backlog will continue to exist.

Anonymous rape kits allow victims who choose to not press charges to receive critical medical care. But opting out of pressing charges shouldn’t preclude testing, and shouldn’t relegate the kit to sit forgotten on an evidence room shelf.

When we were hit with an estimated $5,000 fee for rape kit data and collection policies from Biloxi, Mississippi, we were stunned. Fees this large carry a sense of deterrence, and, with Biloxi’s rate of sexual assault being significantly above the national average, we couldn’t help but wonder if they were trying to hide something. As it turns out, Biloxi’s fee was neither an outlier nor the most expensive we’d see - Fairbanks, Alaska, which sits at number three on Forbes Magazine’s list of “Most Dangerous U.S. Cities for Women,” said their data and policies will cost us $15,000.

In our efforts to uncover the rape kit backlog and report on the extent of untested sexual assault evidence, we often face the hurdle of public records fees. However, the Biloxi, Mississippi police department far surpassed any amount we’ve previously seen, asking for so much money as to render these documents essentially impossible to obtain.