Portside

South Carolina’s system for magistrate judges is unlike any state in the country, creating fertile ground for incompetence and corruption. Most aren’t lawyers, but their decisions can have lasting effects on the vulnerable people who come before them

Chicago Police Detective Reynaldo Guevara is accused of framing at least 51 people for murder. When a group of mothers, aunts and sisters found that no officials — not the state’s attorney’s office, not the mayor’s office — wanted to take up their cause, the women went in search of justice themselves. Next week a man convicted in one of Guevara’s most dubious cases will be in court for what could be his last chance at freedom.

One in 40 Americans can't vote because of a criminal conviction. But the rules aren't exactly fair

Matt Taibbi discusses his new book, "The Divide: American Injustice in the Age of the Wealth Gap." The vast majority of white-collar criminals have avoided prison since the financial crisis began, while an unequal justice system imprisons the poor and people of color on a mass scale. Taibbi explores how the Depression-level income gap between the wealthy and the poor is mirrored by a "justice" gap in who is targeted for prosecution and imprisonment.

Bryan Stevenson: We Need to Talk About Injustice. Leonard Cohen: Democracy Is Coming to the USA. What Does the PISA Report Tell Us About U.S. Education? Chiara de Blasio Tells Her Story. Merry Christmas: No More Unemployment Benefits. President Barack Obama - Drop It Like It's Hot.