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Prisoners' rights ×
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Pennsylvania will no longer hold death-row prisoners in endless solitary confinement

The Philadelphia Inquirer (Philadelphia Media Network)

Samantha Melamed

18 November 2019

Pennsylvania, United States

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Following an ACLU-led civil-rights lawsuit, the Pennsylvania Department of Correction has implemented huge changes to the treatment of death row inmates. In prisons across the state, individuals who have been sentence...

On One Issue, Americans Are United. Too Many Are Behind Bars.

The New York Times

Tina Rosenberg

HUB MEMBER

30 October 2019

Washington, D.C., District of Columbia, United States

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In such a divided country, many groups from lawmakers to advocacy groups are finding rare bipartisan cooperation around the issue of criminal justice reform. Two congressional representatives, one Republican and one D...

This East Tenn. Program Aims to Stop NAS by Reaching Women Behind Bars

100 Days in Appalachia

Jess Mador

HUB MEMBER

17 September 2019

Tennessee, United States

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In Tennessee, health officials are fighting against the the opioid epidemic by educating opioid-affected pregnant women about neonatal abstinence syndrome. Although several approaches have been implemented, the Volunt...

How New York and Milwaukee approach juvenile justice

Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service

Allison Dikanovic

HUB MEMBER

9 September 2019

New York City, New York, United States

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New York’s Close to Home legislation approaches the juvenile justice system through the lens of rehabilitation, moving those in up-state juvenile facilities to local, sometimes residential housing that emphasizes fami...

Reimagining New York Jails Without Solitary Confinement

The City

Reuven Blau

Rosa Goldensohn

19 August 2019

New York City, New York, United States

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Solitary confinement was once thought of as one of the only effective punishments for violent prison inmates. As more research surfaces showing the severe damage it does to mental health, the racial bias of those plac...

When Arizona catches fire, prisoners step up

High Country News

Maya L. Kapoor

5 August 2019

Arizona, United States

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As the cost of fighting wildfires rises and the number of firefighters declines, Arizona found a solution: paying incarcerated men and women to do the same job for just five percent of the standard rate for firefighti...

First Group Of Students Graduates From Wesleyan's Prison Education Program

Hartford Courant

Shawn R. Beals

31 July 2019

Middletown, Connecticut, United States

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The first class of students enrolled in the Wesleyan University Center for Prison Education has just graduated. The program awards participants with an associate degree from Middlesex Community College in general stud...

How Norway turns criminals into good neighbours

BBC

Emma Jane Kirby

7 July 2019

Halden, Norway

Multi-Media

1500-3000 Words

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Norway’s Halden Prison is taking a different approach to incarceration: emphasizing rehabilitation over punishment, which has led to a 20% decrease in recidivism in just two years. Over the past two decades, the count...

How San Mateo County Is Building a 'Prison-to-School' Pipeline

KQED

Vanessa Rancaño

28 June 2019

San Mateo, California, United States

Radio

3-5 Minutes

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In San Mateo's juvenile detention centers, Project Change encourages youth who have completed high school coursework to enroll in community college classes taught on the campus. Inspired by the promise of programs lik...

California: Epicenter of Mass Incarceration Reform

News Beat

Abbie Vansickle

Manny Faces

4 June 2019

Stockton, California, United States

Podcast

Over 15 Minutes

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Following a Supreme Court mandate requiring California to address prison overcrowding, the state has taken numerous initiatives to reduce sentences, relocate inmates, set higher accountability measures for law enforce...

Mississippi Leads the Nation in Criminal Justice Reform

U.S. News & World Report

Casey Leins

3 May 2019

Jackson, Mississippi, United States

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The state of Mississippi has taken drastic steps in reforming their criminal justice system, pointing to a nationwide cultural shift as a driving force. State legislation, such as expanding parole eligibility, elimina...

I Served My Prison Time. Why Do I Still Have to Pay?

The New York Times

Courtney E. Martin

HUB MEMBER

30 April 2019

San Francisco, California, United States

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In 2018, San Francisco county forgave $32 million worth of criminal justice administrative fees. These fees are issued to formerly incarcerated individuals upon release from prison, most of which are not employed and ...

Restoring Prisoners' Access to Education Reduces Recidivism

Pacific Standard

James McWilliams

16 April 2019

Hawaii, United States

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A piece of bipartisan legislation was introduced to the United States’ Senate in February 2018 that would give individuals in incarceration access to Pell Grants, thus increasing their college education opportunities....

DAs Have This Blueprint for Rethinking Criminal Justice

Next City

Emily Nonko

HUB MEMBER

28 March 2019

San Francisco, California, United States

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800-1500 Words

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Formerly incarcerated individuals, community leaders, and members of San Francisco’s District Attorney’s office, have joined forces to create a collaborative advisory board. The board meets to share re-entry challenge...

In Chicago, one mosque charts its own path

Religion News Service

Aysha Khan

HUB MEMBER

26 March 2019

Chicago, Illinois, United States

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Masjid al-Rabia, a small mosque on the third floor of in a co-working space in downtown Chicago, is making waves as an untraditional prayer space. Not only is it woman-centered (not led), but their services are made a...

As Alabama grapples with solitary confinement, other states offer blueprints for change

The Montgomery Advertiser

Melissa Brown

24 March 2019

Montgomery, Alabama, United States

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The use of solitary confinement, or administrative segregation, in prisons is facing pushback across the country. In Alabama, a federal judge tasked the Department of Corrections to investigate how other states are re...

Ypsi-based program aims to restore dignity for women giving birth while incarcerated

Concentrate

Sarah Rigg

HUB MEMBER

6 March 2019

Ypsilanti, Michigan, United States

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800-1500 Words

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The Michigan Prison Doula Initiative seeks to provide pregnant women experiencing incarceration the support and care they need to maintain physical and mental health before, during, and after giving birth. The initiat...

Scrubbing The Past To Give Those With A Criminal Record A Second Chance

NPR

Eric Westervelt

Barbara Brosher

19 February 2019

Indiana, United States

Radio

5-15 Minutes

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Indiana's Second Chance law was passed in 2013 and allows people to petition to remove their misdemeanor convictions and arrests from public view. In Marion County alone, more than 11,500 people have visited the full-...

Staying Connected: Moms Who Pump in Prison

Next City

Malcolm Burnley

4 February 2019

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States

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Riverside Correction Facility in Philadelphia has implemented a program that allows incarcerated new mothers the opportunity to both learn about the benefits of maintaining breast milk supply, and also provide it for ...

Justice by the Numbers: Meet the Statistician Trying to Fix Bias in Criminal Justice Algorithms

Pacific Standard

Katia Savchuk

1 February 2019

New York, United States

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Algorithm-based tools are more frequently being used by courts to determine the risk of an alleged offender so judges can better determine whether the person should be detained or not before trial. Although this metho...

Is It Time for Courts to Stop Charging Bail?

OZY

Nick Fouriezos

31 January 2019

New Orleans, Louisiana, United States

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Despite not yet charged with a crime, many of those incarcerated are in jail because they can't afford a cash bail. Criminal justice reformers are working to change that by both posting bail for those that cannot affo...

Building the Prison-to-School Pipeline in California

Next City

Zoe Sullivan

HUB MEMBER

28 January 2019

Berkeley, California, United States

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Providing those experiencing incarceration with educational services has shown to reduce recidivism by 28%. While many prisons offer GED or higher education classes, the opportunities are still hard to come by consist...

How One County Became a Lab for California's Prison Reform

The Marshall Project

Abbie Vansickle

Manuel Villa

21 December 2018

California, United States

Multi-Media

1500-3000 Words

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After San Joaquin County adopted a slew of criminal justice reforms, crime dropped by 20 percent, the lowest number in a decade. One of the things that was implemented were speciality courts aimed at decreasing arrest...

Why more states are giving juvenile offenders a second chance

The Christian Science Monitor

John Colin Marston

10 December 2018

United States

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Many states are rolling back the punitive measures against youth who committed crimes that began in the 1980s and 1990s. After the Supreme Court ruled that mandatory life sentences for juveniles are unconstitutional, ...

Why Raj Jayadev is helping Philly's criminal justice system adopt participatory defense

Generocity

Grace Shallow

21 November 2018

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States

Multi-Media

Under 800 Words

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Participatory defense, is a model that integrates the family into the legal defense of someone being prosecuted for a crime. Loved ones can bring in evidence like photos and records that speak to the character of the ...

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Photos are licensed under Attribution Non Commercial 2.0 Generic Creative Commons license / Desaturated from original, and are credited to the following photographers:

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