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Meg OConnor

Verified
(She/Her)
  • Senior Reporter and Newsletter Director, The Appeal
Philadelphia
As seen in: The Appeal, CNN, VICE, Teen Vogue, Miami New Times, Houston Press, New Times Broward-Palm Beach, Phoenix New Times, Center for Health Journalism, Gotham Gazette, The Political Report
Covers:  Criminal justice, police, prosecutors, prisons
Writer. Most recently I covered cops and prosecutors for @theappeal. Huge fan of hiking and baking 🍪
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Police Killed His Son. Prosecutors Charged The Teen's Friends with His Murder.

Police Killed His Son. Prosecutors Charged The Teen's Friends with His Murder.

The Appeal — Police killed Jacob Harris, but his friends are serving decades in prison for it. Officials have made inconsistent or false statements about Harris's death.
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How the NYPD's Troubled Sex Crimes Unit Is Set Up To Fail Victims

How the NYPD's Troubled Sex Crimes Unit Is Set Up To Fail Victims

The Appeal — Former top cops say a culture of neglect at the NYPD has left inexperienced officers in charge of some of the department's most sensitive cases.
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She Helped Expose Girls Do Porn, But She Can Never Outrun What It Did to Her

She Helped Expose Girls Do Porn, But She Can Never Outrun What It Did to Her

VICE — One night in October 2013, Monica Evans sat in her dorm room scrolling through Craigslist. She had found her current restaurant job on the site, but after her parents told her she'd have to pay for college herself, she needed to find another way to make some fast cash.
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Police Arrested More Than 3,000 People at Campus Palestine Protests

Police Arrested More Than 3,000 People at Campus Palestine Protests

Teen Vogue — Police have arrested more than 3,000 people at pro-Palestine campus protests.
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Arizona Supreme Court Upholds Total Abortion Ban With Mandatory Prison Time

Arizona Supreme Court Upholds Total Abortion Ban With Mandatory Prison Time

The Appeal — The Arizona Supreme Court ruled the state can enforce a near-total abortion ban passed during the U.S. Civil War.
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A Jury Found Them Not Guilty of Killing a Cop. A Judge Sentenced Them to Life Anyway.

A Jury Found Them Not Guilty of Killing a Cop. A Judge Sentenced Them to Life Anyway.

The Appeal — A jury found Terence Richardson and Ferrone Claiborne not guilty of murdering a cop, but a judge sentenced them to life anyway.
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Arizona Man Faces Decades In Prison After Not Returning a Rental Car on Time

Arizona Man Faces Decades In Prison After Not Returning a Rental Car on Time

The Appeal — B.S., a 61-year-old Black man, has struggled with substance use for decades. Now, prosecutors are leveraging his record against him-and forbidding references to racial justice, George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, B.S.'s potential sentence, or his health problems at his trial.
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New Hope for Phoenix Trio Imprisoned for Murder After Police Killed Their Friend

New Hope for Phoenix Trio Imprisoned for Murder After Police Killed Their Friend

The Appeal — Phoenix police killed their friend-but prosecutors sent them to prison for it. Now, they have a chance to get out of prison.
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Here's Where Pro-Palestine Protesters Face the Harshest Charges

Here's Where Pro-Palestine Protesters Face the Harshest Charges

The Appeal — Prosecutors have filed or are considering filing 187 charges against 66 pro-Palestine, anti-Israel campus protesters from Gaza encampments.
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Alabama Can't Prosecute People For Out-Of-State Abortions, Judge Rules

Alabama Can't Prosecute People For Out-Of-State Abortions, Judge Rules

The Appeal — A federal judge ruled that Alabama cannot prosecute people who get abortions in states where the procedure is legal.
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DOJ Seeks Five-Year Minimum Sentences for Tesla Property Damage

DOJ Seeks Five-Year Minimum Sentences for Tesla Property Damage

The Appeal — Federal prosecutors have filed charges against at least two people for allegedly damaging Tesla property and are seeking five-year sentences.
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AZ Lawmakers Again Try to Limit Controversial 'Felony Murder' Law

AZ Lawmakers Again Try to Limit Controversial 'Felony Murder' Law

The Appeal — The felony murder law allows prosecutors to charge people with murder even if they haven't killed anyone, including for killings by police.
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They Were Acquitted But Sentenced to Life Anyway. Now, They're Finally Free.

They Were Acquitted But Sentenced to Life Anyway. Now, They're Finally Free.

The Appeal — President Joe Biden commuted the sentences of Terence Richardson and Ferrone Claiborne-two men sentenced to life despite their acquittal.
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LA's Wildfires Threaten Almost 40 Prisons and Jails. Here's How They're Responding.

LA's Wildfires Threaten Almost 40 Prisons and Jails. Here's How They're Responding.

The Appeal — The Appeal contacted 38 facilities that may have air quality issues, possible evacuations, and power outages amid the LA fires.
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Idaho Can Now Arrest People Who Help Kids Get Abortions in Other States

Idaho Can Now Arrest People Who Help Kids Get Abortions in Other States

The Appeal — On Monday, a panel of federal judges ruled that Idaho can enforce portions of its draconian "abortion trafficking" ban.
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Prosecutors Have Levied Serious Charges Against Pro-Palestine College Protesters

Prosecutors Have Levied Serious Charges Against Pro-Palestine College Protesters

The Appeal — The Appeal reviewed 935 arrests of pro-Palestine college protesters that occurred on 22 college campuses last Spring.
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Caught in the Storm: How Florida Prisons and Jails Are Responding to Hurricane Milton

Caught in the Storm: How Florida Prisons and Jails Are Responding to Hurricane Milton

The Appeal — More than 20,000 people are incarcerated in Florida jails and prisons located in counties subject to evacuation orders.
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Virginia Prosecutors Fight to Uphold Life Sentence for Man Found Not Guilty

Virginia Prosecutors Fight to Uphold Life Sentence for Man Found Not Guilty

The Appeal — Even though a federal jury found him not guilty of murder, he was sentenced to life in prison. Virginia prosecutors want to keep it that way.
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After DOJ Investigation, Phoenix Residents Say City is Faking Police-Reform Efforts

After DOJ Investigation, Phoenix Residents Say City is Faking Police-Reform Efforts

The Appeal — The Phoenix police chief called the findings of a DOJ investigation "accusations." City leaders continue to reject federal oversight.
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D.C. Can't Dismiss Lawsuit Over Police Response to Mental Health Crises

D.C. Can't Dismiss Lawsuit Over Police Response to Mental Health Crises

The Appeal — A judge ruled D.C. can't dismiss a lawsuit over the district's habit of sending armed police officers to mental health emergencies.
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DOJ Demands Phoenix Police Change. Victims Say More Is Needed.

DOJ Demands Phoenix Police Change. Victims Say More Is Needed.

The Appeal — Community members demand change-and the release of 3 youths imprisoned for a murder committed by a Phoenix police officer after DOJ report.
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Abortion 'Trafficking' Laws, Travel Bans, Medication Crackdowns: How the GOP is Criminalizing Abo...

Abortion 'Trafficking' Laws, Travel Bans, Medication Crackdowns: How the GOP is Criminalizing Abo...

The Appeal — Lawmakers targeted mutual aid, enacted travel bans, and created a new crime of "abortion trafficking" to criminalize abortion post-Dobbs.
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Phoenix Police Wantonly Use Violence and Violate Civil Rights, DOJ Finds

Phoenix Police Wantonly Use Violence and Violate Civil Rights, DOJ Finds

The Appeal — The U.S. Department of Justice announced results of its civil rights investigation into the Phoenix Police Department.
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Incarcerated People Lose Communications Amid Securus's Financial Woes

Incarcerated People Lose Communications Amid Securus's Financial Woes

The Appeal — Aventiv Technologies, which owns Securus and JPay, said its prison messaging services had repeatedly gone down amid financial woes.
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