Decades-old prison buildings were designed to be secure from the ground but not the air. Experts say that makes a lucrative smuggling trade hard to tackle.

Two men who had been held on Rikers Island died in the past week, and Mayor Zohran Mamdani he would “pursue every avenue” to shut the troubled facility as soon as possible.

© Karsten Moran for The New York Times

Inmates in Texas prisons want a federal court to force the state to provide air-conditioning for all its prison cells.

© Verónica G. Cárdenas for The New York Times

Nicole Daedone, the former leader of OneTaste, was sentenced to nine years after being convicted of forced labor conspiracy. She is still finding ways to spread her message from behind bars.

© Jackie Molloy for The New York Times