Alex Burness
@burness.bsky.social
Reporter for @boltsmag.org covering voting rights, democracy, and criminal justice at the local and state levels. Previously @denverpost.com. Support local journalism.
Signal: burness.02
Signal: burness.02
Reposted by Alex Burness
Thrilled to share that Chris Duncan, whose conviction was vacated in April, was just granted bail today, after spending over 25 years on Louisiana's death row.
It's so rare to get good news when you're covering capital punishment, but this is one very real light in the darkness
It's so rare to get good news when you're covering capital punishment, but this is one very real light in the darkness
In January 2024 I got a one-line email from a woman I didn't know: "Jimmie Duncan an innocent man on death row is looking to get into contact with you."
I've been working on the story ever since. Here it is, finally - a @motherjones.com / @bolts.bsky.social feature: boltsmag.org/the-human-co...
I've been working on the story ever since. Here it is, finally - a @motherjones.com / @bolts.bsky.social feature: boltsmag.org/the-human-co...
The Human Cost of Jeff Landry’s Drive to Resume Executions - Bolts
Chris Duncan’s death sentence—built on the testimony of two discredited doctors—illustrates just how faulty the system can be.
boltsmag.org
November 22, 2025 at 1:15 AM
Thrilled to share that Chris Duncan, whose conviction was vacated in April, was just granted bail today, after spending over 25 years on Louisiana's death row.
It's so rare to get good news when you're covering capital punishment, but this is one very real light in the darkness
It's so rare to get good news when you're covering capital punishment, but this is one very real light in the darkness
Reposted by Alex Burness
More elections are already around the corner, mere days.
And Democrats have opportunities to build on their November gains by flipping more offices: in Tennessee, in Georgia, in Florida.
And that's just the tip of a busy election month.
My new guide, just out:
And Democrats have opportunities to build on their November gains by flipping more offices: in Tennessee, in Georgia, in Florida.
And that's just the tip of a busy election month.
My new guide, just out:
The 25 Elections to Watch This December - Bolts
On the heels of their sweeping wins in November, Democrats have opportunities to gain further ground in December runoffs and special elections. They’re hoping for upsets in conservative territory, fro...
boltsmag.org
November 25, 2025 at 6:01 PM
More elections are already around the corner, mere days.
And Democrats have opportunities to build on their November gains by flipping more offices: in Tennessee, in Georgia, in Florida.
And that's just the tip of a busy election month.
My new guide, just out:
And Democrats have opportunities to build on their November gains by flipping more offices: in Tennessee, in Georgia, in Florida.
And that's just the tip of a busy election month.
My new guide, just out:
Reposted by Alex Burness
After Biden commuted the sentences of 37 men on federal death row last year, the Trump administration is retaliating by sending them to the supermax. Prisoners are locked in cells smaller than a parking space 22-24 hours a day.
One prisoner told me he fears he won't make it out alive.
My latest:
One prisoner told me he fears he won't make it out alive.
My latest:
Death Row Prisoners Granted Clemency by Biden Brace for "Living Hell" Under Trump - Bolts
Trump officials are retaliating by imposing the harshest conditions in the entire federal prison system, including near total isolation.
boltsmag.org
November 25, 2025 at 4:36 PM
After Biden commuted the sentences of 37 men on federal death row last year, the Trump administration is retaliating by sending them to the supermax. Prisoners are locked in cells smaller than a parking space 22-24 hours a day.
One prisoner told me he fears he won't make it out alive.
My latest:
One prisoner told me he fears he won't make it out alive.
My latest:
Essential reporting from @laurengill.bsky.social on federal death row under Trump. It’s a topic often buried way down in the news cycle but it urgently deserves attention: boltsmag.org/death-row-cl...
Death Row Prisoners Granted Clemency by Biden Brace for "Living Hell" Under Trump - Bolts
Trump officials are retaliating by imposing the harshest conditions in the entire federal prison system, including near total isolation.
boltsmag.org
November 24, 2025 at 7:33 PM
Essential reporting from @laurengill.bsky.social on federal death row under Trump. It’s a topic often buried way down in the news cycle but it urgently deserves attention: boltsmag.org/death-row-cl...
Reposted by Alex Burness
I wrote for @theintercept.com about how prosecuting transportation of these pamphlets is a danger to all writers, journalists, and Americans.
Possession of words is not a crime, even with intent to distribute.
Possession of words is not a crime, even with intent to distribute.
November 23, 2025 at 3:45 PM
I wrote for @theintercept.com about how prosecuting transportation of these pamphlets is a danger to all writers, journalists, and Americans.
Possession of words is not a crime, even with intent to distribute.
Possession of words is not a crime, even with intent to distribute.
Reposted by Alex Burness
If SCOTUS conservatives gut VRA protections from election discrimination, it won't just threaten POC seats in Congress. It is more often used to protect local elections — like in Fayette, TN, where officials used racist voting maps to ensure an all-white county board:
boltsmag.org/voting-right...
boltsmag.org/voting-right...
Black Residents in West Tennessee Just Won Fairer Districts. Now Comes SCOTUS. - Bolts
The Supreme Court may further erode the Voting Rights Act in an upcoming decision. Beyond affecting Congress, that would reverberate across local governments nationwide.
boltsmag.org
November 21, 2025 at 8:38 PM
If SCOTUS conservatives gut VRA protections from election discrimination, it won't just threaten POC seats in Congress. It is more often used to protect local elections — like in Fayette, TN, where officials used racist voting maps to ensure an all-white county board:
boltsmag.org/voting-right...
boltsmag.org/voting-right...
Yes, and I’ll add: I think non-journalists would be shocked by how hard it can be to contact government media folks. The people who are paid by tax $ to provide info to the public often make themselves almost invisible. (To say nothing of the stonewall you may run into when you *do* reach them.)
One of the things that has made journalism much harder in the past decade is that more and more organisations list absolutely no contact details for anyone on their websites. I assume this is to block spam, but like, how are we meant to reach people? Bring back paper phonebacks?
November 21, 2025 at 6:24 PM
Yes, and I’ll add: I think non-journalists would be shocked by how hard it can be to contact government media folks. The people who are paid by tax $ to provide info to the public often make themselves almost invisible. (To say nothing of the stonewall you may run into when you *do* reach them.)
Reposted by Alex Burness
NEW: ICE has finally released post-shutdown detention data. The latest data reveals that a full 40%(!) of people arrested in the interior and held in ICE detention have no criminal record; no criminal charges or prior convictions. That is up from just 4% when Trump took office.
November 21, 2025 at 4:01 PM
NEW: ICE has finally released post-shutdown detention data. The latest data reveals that a full 40%(!) of people arrested in the interior and held in ICE detention have no criminal record; no criminal charges or prior convictions. That is up from just 4% when Trump took office.
Fayette County, Tennessee, is more than 1/4 Black, but all 19 of its county commissioners are white. Important @pascalsabino.bsky.social piece here about representation and fair maps: boltsmag.org/voting-right...
Black Residents in West Tennessee Just Won Fairer Districts. Now Comes SCOTUS. - Bolts
The Supreme Court may further erode the Voting Rights Act in an upcoming decision. Beyond affecting Congress, that would reverberate across local governments nationwide.
boltsmag.org
November 21, 2025 at 4:00 PM
Fayette County, Tennessee, is more than 1/4 Black, but all 19 of its county commissioners are white. Important @pascalsabino.bsky.social piece here about representation and fair maps: boltsmag.org/voting-right...
Reposted by Alex Burness
Extremely good long read on how prisons shape local economies and politics. So many moments of clarity where the absurdity of the prison-as-industry proposition just slaps you in the face
The construction of prisons in rural areas can create relationships in which residents ultimately become engulfed by incarceration. “The prison almost begins to imprison the community in a way,” says a prison researcher.
The Prison Next Door
How Arkansas’ secretive plan for a new state lockup angered people in a deep red corner of rural America—and changed how some see incarceration.
boltsmag.org
November 21, 2025 at 1:36 AM
Extremely good long read on how prisons shape local economies and politics. So many moments of clarity where the absurdity of the prison-as-industry proposition just slaps you in the face
Reposted by Alex Burness
My last freelance piece of the year published yesterday in @boltsmag.org, taking a look at how Illinois' name change law still disproportionately impacts trans people with criminal histories. boltsmag.org/illinois-nam...
In Illinois, Trans People With Criminal Records Still Face Hurdles to Changing Their Names - Bolts
Illinois earlier this year removed obstacles that some trans residents face when changing their name, with legislators lifting more of the restrictions faced by people with criminal convictions. The ...
boltsmag.org
November 19, 2025 at 3:46 PM
My last freelance piece of the year published yesterday in @boltsmag.org, taking a look at how Illinois' name change law still disproportionately impacts trans people with criminal histories. boltsmag.org/illinois-nam...
A notable election result you might have missed: Somerville, Mass., became the first in the country to pass a ballot measure divesting locally from Israel. Via @prismreports.org: prismreports.org/2025/11/18/s...
How Somerville organized to pass Israel divestment ballot question
Somerville became the first in the U.S. to vote in favor of divesting from Israel’s apartheid and genocide of Palestinians
prismreports.org
November 19, 2025 at 4:03 PM
A notable election result you might have missed: Somerville, Mass., became the first in the country to pass a ballot measure divesting locally from Israel. Via @prismreports.org: prismreports.org/2025/11/18/s...
Reposted by Alex Burness
This is so cool. I interviewed Calvin Duncan - exoneree, and now Orleans Parish Clerk of Court - back in 2023 about his work as a jailhouse lawyer for the folks on death row in Louisiana. I remember being really struck by his words:
November 16, 2025 at 4:28 PM
This is so cool. I interviewed Calvin Duncan - exoneree, and now Orleans Parish Clerk of Court - back in 2023 about his work as a jailhouse lawyer for the folks on death row in Louisiana. I remember being really struck by his words:
Reposted by Alex Burness
Punished for... having a period?
Yes, you read that right – behind bars, menstruation is treated like misconduct. Here's how prisons punish people for a bodily function they have no control over 🧵
Yes, you read that right – behind bars, menstruation is treated like misconduct. Here's how prisons punish people for a bodily function they have no control over 🧵
Menstruation as misconduct: How prisons punish people for having their periods
Our analysis of prison rules and sanctions across all fifty states and the federal system — as well as accounts of incarcerated people — reveal ...
www.prisonpolicy.org
November 13, 2025 at 8:32 PM
Punished for... having a period?
Yes, you read that right – behind bars, menstruation is treated like misconduct. Here's how prisons punish people for a bodily function they have no control over 🧵
Yes, you read that right – behind bars, menstruation is treated like misconduct. Here's how prisons punish people for a bodily function they have no control over 🧵
Reposted by Alex Burness
Confirmed: Katie Wilson will be mayor of Seattle, ousting the incumbent from his left.
And Erika Evans will be the new city attorney, ousting the GOP city attorney after promising to take the office in a more progressive direction.
What do progressives' win mean for law enforcement? NEW IN BOLTS:
And Erika Evans will be the new city attorney, ousting the GOP city attorney after promising to take the office in a more progressive direction.
What do progressives' win mean for law enforcement? NEW IN BOLTS:
Progressives Win in Seattle, Changing Directions on Public Safety - Bolts
Voters ousted a mayor who oversaw a surge in encampment sweeps, and a Republican prosecutor who pursued punitive policies toward homeless people and drug users.
boltsmag.org
November 13, 2025 at 8:33 PM
Confirmed: Katie Wilson will be mayor of Seattle, ousting the incumbent from his left.
And Erika Evans will be the new city attorney, ousting the GOP city attorney after promising to take the office in a more progressive direction.
What do progressives' win mean for law enforcement? NEW IN BOLTS:
And Erika Evans will be the new city attorney, ousting the GOP city attorney after promising to take the office in a more progressive direction.
What do progressives' win mean for law enforcement? NEW IN BOLTS:
After the Bucks County sheriff election, one immigrant rights organizer told me: “I know ICE will still be here, but at least in our community we get some sense of peace. People haven’t wanted to go church, to concerts, to public events, because everybody is thinking they’re going to be taken.”
A Republican sheriff in a swing county that Trump won by 0.1% signed a contract to help ICE, then lost last week by 11.
New by me in @boltsmag.org: boltsmag.org/sheriff-of-b...
New by me in @boltsmag.org: boltsmag.org/sheriff-of-b...
Voters Ousted This Pennsylvania Sheriff After He Signed Up to Collaborate With ICE - Bolts
A populous, swing county replaced its GOP sheriff on Tuesday after months of controversy over his joining ICE’s 287(g) program. The Democratic winner promises he’ll end the contract.
boltsmag.org
November 10, 2025 at 8:37 PM
After the Bucks County sheriff election, one immigrant rights organizer told me: “I know ICE will still be here, but at least in our community we get some sense of peace. People haven’t wanted to go church, to concerts, to public events, because everybody is thinking they’re going to be taken.”
A Republican sheriff in a swing county that Trump won by 0.1% signed a contract to help ICE, then lost last week by 11.
New by me in @boltsmag.org: boltsmag.org/sheriff-of-b...
New by me in @boltsmag.org: boltsmag.org/sheriff-of-b...
Voters Ousted This Pennsylvania Sheriff After He Signed Up to Collaborate With ICE - Bolts
A populous, swing county replaced its GOP sheriff on Tuesday after months of controversy over his joining ICE’s 287(g) program. The Democratic winner promises he’ll end the contract.
boltsmag.org
November 10, 2025 at 7:20 PM
A Republican sheriff in a swing county that Trump won by 0.1% signed a contract to help ICE, then lost last week by 11.
New by me in @boltsmag.org: boltsmag.org/sheriff-of-b...
New by me in @boltsmag.org: boltsmag.org/sheriff-of-b...
In addition to military/overseas voters, young people and non-white people tend to vote later, and thus are more vulnerable to bans on counting late-arriving ballots. That is why Trump wants this change, and why plenty of red states have lately rushed to do his bidding: boltsmag.org/restrictions...
November 10, 2025 at 3:08 PM
In addition to military/overseas voters, young people and non-white people tend to vote later, and thus are more vulnerable to bans on counting late-arriving ballots. That is why Trump wants this change, and why plenty of red states have lately rushed to do his bidding: boltsmag.org/restrictions...
Reposted by Alex Burness
Absolutely incredible reporting by @boltsmag.org
"Even just $30 in my pocket felt like a lot...It made the difference between me staying out here and me going back to prison. I could buy me something to eat, catch a bus, catch a cab...It makes a difference, and I’m telling you from experience.*
"Even just $30 in my pocket felt like a lot...It made the difference between me staying out here and me going back to prison. I could buy me something to eat, catch a bus, catch a cab...It makes a difference, and I’m telling you from experience.*
This Pennsylvania county stopped charging people 'lodging fees' for the time they spent in jail. Then commissioners voted to forgive over $65 million in these fees.
“What a light of hope this has been,” said one woman whose son owed $17,000.
“What a light of hope this has been,” said one woman whose son owed $17,000.
This Pennsylvania County Wiped Out Millions in Jail Debt
After Dauphin County ended the practice of charging people while they’re detained in jail, Commissioner Justin Douglas pushed it to forgive more than $65 million in lodging fees.
boltsmag.org
November 7, 2025 at 3:21 AM
Absolutely incredible reporting by @boltsmag.org
"Even just $30 in my pocket felt like a lot...It made the difference between me staying out here and me going back to prison. I could buy me something to eat, catch a bus, catch a cab...It makes a difference, and I’m telling you from experience.*
"Even just $30 in my pocket felt like a lot...It made the difference between me staying out here and me going back to prison. I could buy me something to eat, catch a bus, catch a cab...It makes a difference, and I’m telling you from experience.*
Gerrymandering Virginia will be “one of the 1st orders of business” for the legislature in January, the state’s senate majority leader tells @boltsmag.org. That was only made possible by Tuesday’s results.
This + other democracy-related election effects explained here: boltsmag.org/five-ways-20...
This + other democracy-related election effects explained here: boltsmag.org/five-ways-20...
Five Ways Tuesday’s Results Will Affect Voting Rules and Democracy - Bolts
From felony disenfranchisement and mail-voting to mid-decade gerrymanders, Tuesday delivered verdicts on election law across these five states.
boltsmag.org
November 7, 2025 at 2:39 PM
Gerrymandering Virginia will be “one of the 1st orders of business” for the legislature in January, the state’s senate majority leader tells @boltsmag.org. That was only made possible by Tuesday’s results.
This + other democracy-related election effects explained here: boltsmag.org/five-ways-20...
This + other democracy-related election effects explained here: boltsmag.org/five-ways-20...
I wrote about how this election affected voting and democracy, new in @boltsmag.org: boltsmag.org/five-ways-20...
Five Ways Tuesday’s Results Will Affect Voting Rules and Democracy - Bolts
From felony disenfranchisement and mail-voting to mid-decade gerrymanders, Tuesday delivered verdicts on election law across these five states.
boltsmag.org
November 6, 2025 at 9:48 PM
I wrote about how this election affected voting and democracy, new in @boltsmag.org: boltsmag.org/five-ways-20...
Reposted by Alex Burness
Jeanine Pirro tried to make an example of Sean Dunn.
She ended up delivering a hero to Washington, D.C.
www.huffpost.com/entry/dc-san...
She ended up delivering a hero to Washington, D.C.
www.huffpost.com/entry/dc-san...
DC ‘Sandwich Guy’ Found Not Guilty After Defense Successfully Highlights Absurdity Of It All
Jeanine Pirro tried to make an example of Sean Dunn. She ended up delivering a hero to Washington, D.C.
www.huffpost.com
November 6, 2025 at 7:40 PM
Jeanine Pirro tried to make an example of Sean Dunn.
She ended up delivering a hero to Washington, D.C.
www.huffpost.com/entry/dc-san...
She ended up delivering a hero to Washington, D.C.
www.huffpost.com/entry/dc-san...
Reposted by Alex Burness
Incoming NJ governor Mikie Sherrill hasn't said whether she'll uphold a state policy limiting law enforcement cooperation w/ ICE. Advocates say lawmakers must pass legislation to preserve & expand protections for NJ's 2.2 million immigrants before she takes office.
boltsmag.org/immigration-...
boltsmag.org/immigration-...
Immigration Protections Are Uncertain in New Jersey even as Democrats Keep Governorship - Bolts
Advocates want to promptly codify the limits on immigration enforcement put in place by the outgoing governor. Mikie Sherill, Tuesday’s winner, has declined to say if she'd continue them.
boltsmag.org
November 5, 2025 at 10:12 PM
Incoming NJ governor Mikie Sherrill hasn't said whether she'll uphold a state policy limiting law enforcement cooperation w/ ICE. Advocates say lawmakers must pass legislation to preserve & expand protections for NJ's 2.2 million immigrants before she takes office.
boltsmag.org/immigration-...
boltsmag.org/immigration-...
Reposted by Alex Burness
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Donate today and help us get there:
Support Bolts
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November 5, 2025 at 5:21 PM
A reminder that we are currently running our end-of-year fundraising campaign!
If you appreciate reading election coverage from Bolts, consider donating. Right now, your gift will be matched!
If you appreciate reading election coverage from Bolts, consider donating. Right now, your gift will be matched!
A prominent MAGA politician in Colorado, who helped make the “Venezuelan gang takeover” story a major election issue last fall, is trailing behind two progressive challengers in her re-election bid, despite dramatically outspending them. www.9news.com/article/news...
In early returns, Jurinsky trails in Aurora City Council at-large race
The top two vote-getters in the five-candidate race are elected to an at-large seat.
www.9news.com
November 5, 2025 at 3:55 PM
A prominent MAGA politician in Colorado, who helped make the “Venezuelan gang takeover” story a major election issue last fall, is trailing behind two progressive challengers in her re-election bid, despite dramatically outspending them. www.9news.com/article/news...