“This combination of powerful reporting with painstaking research yields a comprehensive examination of the modern American criminal justice system that appeals to both the head and the heart,” reads a rave New York Times review. Additional raves come from Serial host Sarah Koenig: “Bazelon, cogent and clear-eyed as ever, lays out a welcome double-barreled argument: A prosecutorial shift toward mercy and fairness is crucial to healing our busted criminal justice system, and it’s already happening.” 

Charged follows the harrowing story of two young people caught up in the criminal justice system. Tracking the cases from arrest and charging to trial and sentencing, Bazelon applies her trademark blend of deeply reported narrative and legal analysis to illustrate exactly how criminal prosecutions can go wrong, and more importantly why they don’t have to. “She believes that American prosecution can heal itself,” says the NYT. “They can protect against convicting the innocent. They can guard against racial bias. They can curtail mass incarceration.”

A crucial book, written by one of our sharpest investigative journalists, Charged provides the blueprint for a different and profoundly better future.