Pamela Colloff

As Federal Prisons Run Low on Food and Toilet Paper, Corrections Officers Leave in Droves for ICE Many of the problems the agency is facing now are not new, but staff and prisoners fear an exodus of officers could make life behind bars even worse.

It's @keribla.bsky.social's first story for @propublica.org! But it won't be her last on the Bureau of Prisons.

Do you work for BOP and have tips, documents, or data you can share to paint a fuller picture of what’s going on inside? You should contact Keri.

www.propublica.org/article/ice-...

NJ Bans ‘Shaken Baby Syndrome’ Evidence in Nationwide First (1) Criminal prosecutors can’t build murder cases on medical diagnoses that the mere shaking of a baby, without further evidence of trauma, resulted in a child’s death, the New Jersey Supreme Court ruled ...

This is seismic news. It's hard to overstate how big the implications are for both future prosecutions and wrongful convictions. This NJ decision could reshape how courts across the country treat shaken-baby expert testimony.

news.bloomberglaw.com/litigation/n...

Page after page after page was redacted. #foia

Texas Almost Executed a Man Based on “Junk Science.” His Ordeal Isn’t Over. Robert Roberson, who was nearly killed due to the discredited “shaken baby syndrome” theory, is still at risk.

Over 20 years ago, Robert Roberson was convicted based on the debunked Shaken Baby Syndrome hypothesis and sentenced to death. Now, the lead detective on his case, Brian Wharton, is fighting to save his life. New for @thenation.com. www.thenation.com/article/soci...

Overheard at the coffee shop where I'm working: "That's what's hard about starting a band in NYC, and a band in L.A., at the same time." 🤔

I interviewed the big guy

Dana, I wish I'd known you were there!

As a reader, I would have loved that!

YES

I'm writing a background section that's too dense and complex, and wish I could just write, "Two years later, after a lot of shit went down..."

The art of listening - Nieman Storyboard Sasha Bonét on structuring a memoir. Plus: Pamela Colloff on getting unstuck, European Press Prize, and more

My Friday newsletter for @niemanstoryboard.org:

Featuring @sasha-bonet.bsky.social and @cmtapper.bsky.social, @pamelacolloff.bsky.social, @evrat.bsky.social + Charlotte mag tributes from @michaelngraff.bsky.social @tommytomlinson.bsky.social @ncrabbithole.com

niemanstoryboard.org/2025/11/14/t...

Thank you so much, Mark!!

LOLLLLLLLLLL

Pro tip: When you get stuck writing a story, read the original pitch you wrote back when you were trying to get your editor excited about the idea. All the answers are there!

Image of several physical hardcovers of WITHOUT CONSENT: A Landmark Trial and the Decades-Long Struggle To Make Spousal Rape a Crime by Sarah Weinman, published by Ecco on November 11, 2025 (that's today!)

Today is the publication day for WITHOUT CONSENT, a book I am so proud to share with the world, and that the New York Times Book Review says "is years — decades — overdue."

Read more, and order in your preferred format from your favorite retailer here: www.sarahweinman.com/book/without...

I should have tagged @texasmonthly.bsky.social! 🙈

Announcing Our Newest Book, ‘She Kills,’ by Legendary True Crime Writer Skip Hollandsworth The curated selection of the writer’s Texas Monthly work features stories of women whose often sensational crimes and circumstances put them on the wrong side of the law.

If you'll be at the @texasbookfest.bsky.social this weekend:

On Saturday, November 8th, I'll be interviewing the great Skip Hollandsworth at 3:15 pm at the Texas Tent about his new book, SHE KILLS.

www.texasmonthly.com/press-room/t...

yessssss!!

Appeals Court Upholds Shaken Baby Conviction Despite Medical Examiner Recanting Testimony Dissenting from the court’s majority, one judge sounded the alarm about ignoring recanted forensic testimony, saying the medical examiner’s reversal “calls into doubt the foundation of the trial.”

Dissenting from the court's majority, one judge sounded the alarm about ignoring recanted forensic testimony, saying the medical examiner's reversal "calls into doubt the foundation of the trial."

By @pamelacolloff.bsky.social

He Was a Beloved Dog Trainer and an Asylum Seeker. Why Was He Detained? The humans love him, and so do the canines. What happened when ICE took Seyre Mussa Traore away.

Here's a story about Mussa Traore, a dog trainer who for two years has been working at a south Austin dog park. Nobody was a bigger part of the community or was as beloved as Traore was--by both humans and their canines. That didn’t stop ICE from taking him away.
www.texasmonthly.com/news-politic...

This was beautiful!

In Praise of Librarians in Dangerous Times Librarians are on the front lines of history and current events, when news and change arrive at a furious clip that only quickens every day. And without libraries, my work would simply not exist. I…

Back in June, I gave the keynote address at the American Library Association's Carnegie Awards, and I'm very pleased that @literaryhub.bsky.social has republished the full text of my speech:

Appeals Court Upholds Shaken Baby Conviction Despite Medical Examiner Recanting Testimony Dissenting from the court’s majority, one judge sounded the alarm about ignoring recanted forensic testimony, saying the medical examiner’s reversal “calls into doubt the foundation of the trial.”

This is wild. Appeals Court Upholds Shaken Baby Conviction Despite Medical Examiner Recanting Testimony, by @pamelacolloff.bsky.social

Thanks so much, Joel

“Every medical expert presented at the recent post-conviction hearing — both for the prosecution and defense — agreed this is not a case about abuse. Russell needs to come home. We are not going to stop fighting until that day comes.”

Appeals Court Upholds Shaken Baby Conviction Despite Medical Examiner Recanting Testimony Dissenting from the court’s majority, one judge sounded the alarm about ignoring recanted forensic testimony, saying the medical examiner’s reversal “calls into doubt the foundation of the trial.”

NEW: A Tennessee appeals court ruled that the evidence didn’t prove Russell Maze's innocence, even though the medical examiner whose testimony helped convict Maze had recanted and concluded Maze’s son died of natural causes, not abuse.

By @pamelacolloff.bsky.social

He Was Convicted of Killing His Baby. The DA’s Office Says He’s Innocent, but That Might Not Be Enough. When new scientific evidence casts doubt on convictions, the justice system has no easy path to freedom — even when it’s the prosecutors doing the asking.

You can read more about the Maze case, and the conviction review unit's reinvestigation of the case, in my 2024 story: www.propublica.org/article/nash...

In the decades since Maze was convicted of his son's death, doctors and researchers have found that the symptoms once considered to be the hallmarks of shaken baby syndrome can have other causes, including accidental falls, illness, infection, and congenital disorders.

The court’s 2-1 decision followed a sweeping, yearlong reinvestigation of the case by the DA’s office’s conviction-review unit, which ultimately concluded that Russell Maze's son died not from shaking but from an undiagnosed medical condition.

Appeals Court Upholds Shaken Baby Conviction Despite Medical Examiner Recanting Testimony Dissenting from the court’s majority, one judge sounded the alarm about ignoring recanted forensic testimony, saying the medical examiner’s reversal “calls into doubt the foundation of the trial.”

My latest: on Friday, a Tennessee appeals court ruled that new evidence didn’t prove Russell Maze's innocence--even though the medical examiner whose testimony helped convict Maze recanted and concluded Maze’s son died of natural causes, not from being shaken.

www.propublica.org/article/tenn...