penal

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

In fall 2025, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into law AB 847, which amended the penal code to allow oversight commissions to receive confidential sheriff’s department documents and review them in closed session.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 17, 2026

The interim government is prosecuting Atef Najib under the 1949 penal code, a statute written for ordinary murder, not for crimes against humanity.

From Slate • May 27, 2026

Russian human rights activist Osechkin, 44, who lives in France under police protection, said Ukrainian prisoners are often made "invisible" within the penal system, and has even documented cases of their names being changed.

From Barron's • May 8, 2026

Memorial was founded in the late 1980s to document victims of Soviet-era political repression during which millions of people perished in the Gulag penal system.

From Barron's • Apr. 9, 2026

One in 9 black men between the ages of twenty and thirty-five was behind bars in 2006, and far more were under some form of penal control—such as probation or parole.

From "The New Jim Crow" by Michelle Alexander