Michael Carvajal calls it quits at the Bureau of Prisons after a scandal-ridden term. The bureau’s director, appointed during the Trump era, failed to protect prisoners and staff from the coronavirus or each other. More than 100 bureau workers have been arrested, convicted or sentenced for crimes since 2019, and there were growing calls on Capitol Hill for his resignation. A successor has not been named. The Associated Press Carvajal began his career 30 years ago as a prison guard in Texas. The Washington Post TMP Context: How federal prisons became coronavirus death traps. The Marshall Project

“We will follow the facts wherever they lead.” U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland said Wednesday that the Justice Department will continue to aggressively investigate the Capitol insurrection*.* The feds have arrested 725 people so far, Garland said on the eve of the anniversary of the attack. The Washington Post Related: Three more police officers injured by the Trump-supporting mob have sued the former president in civil lawsuits. Politico More: The House Select Committee’s investigation into the riot is about to ramp up. And there are discussions about prime-time televised hearings. The New York Times TMP Context: A civilian’s guide to insurrection legalese. The Marshall Project

“Is this America?” First, the U.S. Capitol police were attacked by a mob last January. Then they were betrayed by Republican lawmakers and police union officials. The New York Times For the police officers who survived, it’s been a year of trauma and a push to hold the rioters accountable. Politico The Capitol rioters have their own unit (and their own traditions) inside the jail in Washington, D.C. The Washingtonian Texans try to explain why so many of their friends and neighbors became part of a violent mob. PBS Experts warn of a growing threat to democracy brought on by voter suppression and other authoritarian means. NBC News

More than a century later, a pardon for Homer Plessy. On Wednesday, Louisiana Gov. Bel Edwards posthumously pardoned the long-dead shoemaker and civil rights icon whose landmark Supreme Court case established the segregationist “separate but equal” doctrine. NOLA.com Plessy, a Creole man of African descent, was convicted of sitting in a Whites-only section of a railway car in segregated New Orleans in 1892. His case was decided by the justices in 1896. He died in 1925. CBS News TMP Context: Bitter lessons learned about the lynchings of the Jim Crow South. The Marshall Project

When police take advantage of informants in drug cases. Troy Howlett died of a drug overdose in 2018 while working as a police informant in Virginia. His mother says her young son needed help for his addiction, but was instead encouraged by police and prosecutors to complete drug deals at great personal risk of violence and relapse. She’s now suing those officials, and is also asking state legislatures to limit the ways that drug informants can be used so that other families don’t have to suffer the tragedy that hers did. The New Republic

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is being criticized by a Republican opponent for the suicides and pay problems among the National Guard troops sent to patrol the border. Texas Tribune

Anthony Miller spent six years in prison in New York for a murder he did not commit. Now he’s free and cautiously making his way in a world hammered by a pandemic. USA Today TMP Context: Leaving Cook County Jail is a dangerous proposition. The Marshall Project

Emanuel Fair was jailed for nine years by Washington prosecutors who sought to pin a murder charge on him. They never did, and now he’s suing for malicious prosecution in a case raising questions about the conduct of King County officials. Seattle Times

The California Supreme Court this week embraced a narrow interpretation of a ballot initiative designed to encourage prison officials to release more prisoners more quickly. The Associated Press

Massachusetts’ prison population is declining even as the state spends more in its corrections budget. So why aren’t prisoners benefiting from more educational programs and employment training services behind bars? WBUR

Follow the money. A $26 billion opioid settlement fund is now largely in the hands of state and local officials who haven’t earned a reputation for ensuring that money gets to the people who need it most during a crisis. The New Republic

A white-collar revolt on Jan. 6. “Over half of those…arrested are business owners, CEOs from white-collar occupations, doctors, lawyers and architects.” The riot was not caused by fringe elements but rather by mainstream ideologues. Slate More: Is Joe Biden president? Congressional Republicans still won’t say. HuffPost

The “danger imperative” in California. “Rather than address the socioeconomic drivers of violence or enact essential firearm regulations, legislators continue to place gun rights and the profits of gun manufacturers above the lives of police and the public.” Los Angeles Times

Let’s be candid about the threat to democracy. “A year ago, most Republicans would have drawn a bright-red line at overturning an election result through physical menace. Now, nearly all of them have stood with the leader who stomped over the line and is prepared to do so again.” New York Magazine

Wait ‘til next year. Last year was going to bring new limits on “qualified immunity” for police officers. It didn’t turn out that way, even as a bipartisan consensus for change strengthened. Reason

Caught between immigration advocates and hardliners in Congress. The Biden administration is left to defend itself against lawsuits brought by migrant families separated during the Trump era. The Washington Post

The enduring images of the Capitol riot. Looking back on the violence and mayhem, one year later. The Washington Post More: A photographer’s helmet cam captured images of the insurrection not seen until now. Los Angeles Times

A new round of coronavirus-fueled delays. Los Angeles County officials have suspended criminal trials for two weeks amid a surge in the omicron variant in California. Los Angeles Times There’s now a local outbreak of cases among police and other first responders. Los Angeles Times

From bad to worse in some Chicago neighborhoods. When it comes to gun violence, 2021 was the deadliest year in the city in a generation. City officials are fighting over how best to try to address the problem. Chicago Sun-Times

When the mob comes for you. Rep. Jamie Raskin, the Maryland Democrat targeted by rioters, recounts in a book excerpt the fear and chaos inside the Capitol that day. The New Republic