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Jewish prisoners

A Star of David on the door to the not-yet-renovated synagogue at Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia, April 2, 2008. (AP/Matt Rourke)
July 17, 2026, 4:44 pm
First US prison synagogue stages new exhibit with story of Jewish inmates who built it
Dedicated in 1929, the chapel at Eastern State Penitentiary reflects America’s dynamic Jewish history as crime, conversion, community and immigration converged some 100 years ago
By Stephen Silver
Michael Milken, left, formerly of Drexel Burnham Lambert Inc., arrives at State Supreme Court in Manhattan for his arraignment, April 7, 1989. At right is Milken's attorney Arthur Liman. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
November 4, 2024, 2:02 am
How an ’80s Wall Street hotshot’s antics got him jailed – and how Trump aided his comeback
In ‘Witness to a Prosecution,’ Richard Sandler takes on the legal system that landed his friend Michael Milken in prison and charts his return, which includes a presidential pardon
By Rich Tenorio
Rabbi Gabriel Kretzmer-Seed, right, speaks with volunteers about his work as the Jewish chaplain at Rikers. (NYC Department of Corrections)
April 23, 2024, 10:01 am
At Rikers Island, Jewish volunteers connect with inmates by leading prayer services
Joining grassroots efforts to alleviate the notoriously brutal conditions at NY State’s largest jail is a group from the UWS Base that learns, prays and spends time with prisoners
By julia GERGELY
Jedidiah Murphy wears a skull cap that was a gift from one of his supporters, Rabbi Yehuda Eber, in the death row unit at Polunsky prison in Livingston, Texas, October 26, 2019. (Yehuda Eber via JTA)
October 10, 2023, 1:30 am
As execution day nears, advocates for Texas Jew on death row say hopes are dimming
Jedidiah Murphy is to die by lethal injection Tuesday for the murder of a 79-year-old during a carjacking, but many say he would be more valuable ministering to fellow prisoners
By Ron Kampeas
Ghislaine Maxwell attends a press conference on the Issue of Oceans in Sustainable Development Goals at United Nations headquarters, June 25, 2013. (United Nations Photo/Rick Bajornas via AP, File)
August 7, 2023, 10:41 pm
Ghislaine Maxwell said receiving prison benefits by touting Jewish heritage
Assistant to Jeffrey Epstein, jailed for sex trafficking minors, did not previously identify as a Jew
By PHILISSA CRAMER
Rabbi Mark Borovitz kisses Harriet Rossetto. (Courtesy)
May 5, 2023, 10:10 pm
Film tracks the match made in prison that turned a convict into a rabbi on a mission
‘The Jewish Jail Lady and the Holy Thief’ tells feel-good true story of Harriet Rossetto and Mark Borovitz, who turned over a new leaf to help former convicts and addicts in LA
By Julie Masis
A general view shows the Rikers Island jail complex in the East River of New York, from Queens, on January 13, 2022, with a Passover seder and matzah illustration. (Ed JONES/Getty Images/ Illustration by Mollie Suss via JTA)
April 5, 2023, 2:05 am
Next year as free men: On Rikers Island, a Passover seder for Jewish inmates
Known for its harsh conditions, the oft-overlooked NYC prison allows a yearly ritual that provides a rare ray of hope for those incarcerated there — and the volunteers who lead it
By Jacob Henry
'Sentence: Ten Years and a Thousand Books in Prison,' by Daniel Genis, pictured at right in weightlifting gear, in an undated photo taken during his prison time. (Courtesy)
December 21, 2022, 3:54 am
A first ‘real’ Hanukkah helped an inmate find light during a decade behind bars
In his memoir ‘Sentence: Ten Years and a Thousand Books in Prison,’ Daniel Genis tells how voracious reading and finding his Jewish identity saved his life in more ways than one
By Rich Tenorio
Jon Grobman (center) poses with a group of incarcerated men at California State Prison, Los Angeles County, in Lancaster. His own prison term behind him, Grobman now works as director of programs for Paws for Life K9 Rescue, which has incarcerated men train shelter dogs. (Courtesy of Rita Earl Blackwell, via JTA)
September 6, 2021, 5:09 am
A rabbi and rescue dogs helped this US prison lifer find freedom and redemption
Jon Grobman was given a life sentence without parole, but after dedicating himself to helping fellow inmates through a canine training program, he’s been granted an early release
By Alix Wall
A billboard by YAFFED in front of a yeshiva, asking parents to think about their sons' secular education. (Courtesy)
January 14, 2021, 4:47 pm
Hasidic man cites lack of schooling in US mercy plea for laundering drug money
Canadian citizen Zalman Zirkind faces up to 14 years in American federal prison on charges; says little secular education led to financial desperation in supporting large family
By Shira Hanau
In this December 3, 2003, file photo, death row inmate Randy Halprin, then 26, sits in a visitation cell at the Polunsky Unit in Livingston, Texas. (AP Photo/Brett Coomer, File)
July 9, 2019, 6:40 pm
Execution date set for US Jewish inmate who claimed judge was anti-Semitic
Randy Halprin, now 41, was sentenced to death in 2003 for murder of Texas cop, has demanded a retrial ‘free of discrimination and bias’
By Marcy Oster
James A. White, who is serving a life sentence in prison in Vacaville, California established a community college program for fellow inmates. (Courtesy of J. The Jewish News of Northern California/via JTA)
August 29, 2018, 4:49 am
Jewish inmate credits local paper as parole board backs commuting life sentence
James A. White Jr. was originally sentenced to die behind bars, but an inmate college program he founded boasting over 1,500 graduates to date could be the key to his release
By Maya Mirsky
David Eliezrie
December 29, 2017, 1:29 pm
David Eliezrie
Lessons from Rubashkin
Had his sentence been commensurate to the crime, the Orthodox community would have accepted it
An illustrative photo of prison food. (Screen capture: YouTube)
October 11, 2017, 6:43 pm
Jewish prisoners in Michigan sue for kosher meals
Class action suit says 50 to 100 inmates approved for kosher food have been rebuffed despite repeated requests
By JTA
Illustrative: A prisoner behind bars. (sakhorn38/ iStock via Getty images)
August 24, 2017, 7:52 am
Federal judge rules Idaho prisoners must be allowed kosher meals
ACLU lawsuit said prison services violated Jewish inmates’ constitutional rights to free exercise of religion and equal protection
By JTA
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