Samantha reports on whether New Yorkers feel safe and whether the institutions that are supposed to protect them are working. Before coming to WNYC/Gothamist, she spent three years covering the criminal justice system in Tennessee for Nashville Public Radio. Her reporting on Nashville's police department received multiple awards, including the Daniel Schorr Journalism Prize. Samantha was also part of the inaugural class of Report for America, a service journalism program that sends up-and-coming reporters to local newsrooms across the country. She is a Northwestern University grad, a Baltimore native and fluent in Spanish.
Samantha Max appears in the following:
Bronx DA assembling team of prosecutors to review Rikers sexual assault tips
Wednesday, April 10, 2024
The Bronx DA’s office will review claims of sexual assault made by former detainees on Rikers Island against jail staff in response to a Gothamist investigation.
Lawmakers respond to sexual abuse allegations at Rikers Island
Saturday, March 30, 2024
New York lawmakers respond to WNYC investigation that reveals decades of alleged abuse in the Rikers Island women's jail.
Alleged Abuse at Rikers Comes to Light
Tuesday, March 26, 2024
Inside the investigation into alleged systemic sexual abuse on Rikers Island.
Late-night sex assaults. Invasive searches. The 700+ women alleging abuse at Rikers.
Tuesday, March 26, 2024
At least 719 people filed lawsuits against the Department of Correction and the city alleging they were sexually assaulted while at Rikers.
NJ businessman admits trying to bribe Sen. Bob Menendez, will cooperate with prosecutors
Friday, March 01, 2024
Jose Uribe agreed to cooperate with federal officials as a condition of his plea deal.
Harlem residents mourn a pioneer of NY’s criminal justice reform movement
Monday, February 12, 2024
Harlem residents and community organizers are mourning the death of Joseph “Jazz” Hayden, a convicted Harlem drug dealer turned criminal justice reform advocate.
Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg announces new charges in Times Square assault
Thursday, February 08, 2024
Charges include second-degree assault and tampering with physical evidence.
Manhattan DA returns art stolen by the Nazis to one-time owner’s heirs
Thursday, January 25, 2024
Jewish cabaret performer and art collector Fritz Grünbaum's heirs were reunited with two drawings that prosecutors say the Nazis stole from him.
Manhattan judge denies request to dismiss subway chokehold case against Daniel Penny
Wednesday, January 17, 2024
An attorney representing the family of Jordan Neely, the victim, called the ruling a “big win.”
In Greenpoint, a man with severe mental illness is harming neighbors. No one knows what to do.
Friday, October 20, 2023
When someone with serious mental illness poses a threat, what’s the best way to keep both the person and the community safe?
Chanel Lewis, convicted of killing woman jogging in Queens, asks for new trial
Friday, August 25, 2023
Attorneys for a Black man sentenced to life in prison for the sexual assault and murder of a white woman say police and prosecutors didn't disclose key evidence.
Michael K. Williams’s friends want mercy for men who pleaded guilty in actor's overdose death
Tuesday, July 25, 2023
Prosecutors are seeking long prison sentences for the men who have pleaded guilty to charges related to the overdose death of actor Michael K. Williams.
The Challenges for the New NYPD Commissioner
Wednesday, July 19, 2023
The challenges facing the new police commissioner and more.
A new program in Brownsville aims to break the link between two common types of shootings
Monday, July 10, 2023
A novel program in Brownsville, Brooklyn, is working to break the links between of two of the most common types of shootings.
NYPD News Update
Wednesday, June 14, 2023
An exploration into the resignation of NYPD Commissioner Sewell, and other department news.
NYPD Commissioner Keechant Sewell resigns after year and a half on the job
Monday, June 12, 2023
The commissioner did not provide any explanation for her departure or information about what she’ll do next.
DO NOT USE! How legal is it to film the NYPD? An activist tests the system online and in court
Tuesday, May 30, 2023
A group of social media personalities is testing the limits of what’s acceptable — and what’s legal — when it comes to filming officers.
No charges yet for man who put Black homeless New Yorker in chokehold on the F train
Thursday, May 04, 2023
The death of a man who appeared to be suffering from mental illness on an F train on Monday is stirring outrage after a man who had placed him in a chokehold wasn’t charged by the NYPD.
NYPD's Robot Dogs and Other New Tech
Friday, April 14, 2023
The NYPD's controversial plan to test the use of robot dogs and other hi-tech surveillance devices.
How a man who served on Rikers came to serve in the NY state Assembly
Thursday, November 17, 2022
This month, Gibbs became the first formerly incarcerated state lawmaker to be elected to a full term in New York — and one of just a few nationwide.
