Artwork stating 'Education Destroys Barriers', 'We Demand Treatment', and 'I Need A Chance'

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  • Manhattan Mental Health Court offers lifeline to those with serious mental illness — but they have to get in

    November 14, 2020 |

    New York Daily News |

    Text |

    800-1500 Words

    Response Location: United States, New York, New York

    Manhattan Mental Health Court was created in 2011 to divert felony criminal cases to treatment, and away from prison, for people in need of mental health treatment. But few people with serious mental illness ever benefit from it. Too few defense lawyers know to request the intervention or do it correctly. Prosecutors act as gatekeepers in deciding who gets the help, and many do not see its value. And, once cases are admitted to the court, they can sometimes take years to be resolved. Covid restrictions on the courts have only aggravated these problems.

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  • For families involved in Philly's child welfare system, this program is building a safety net

    November 12, 2020 |

    Kensington Voice |

    Text |

    Over 3000 Words

    Response Location: United States, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

    A pilot program within the child welfare system in Philadelphia is providing wraparound services for parents at risk of losing custody of their children. The multi-disciplinary services include an attorney, social workers, and a peer advocate in addition to services that help stabilize families such as housing, employment, and addiction treatment. Similar programs in New York City and Washington state show significant reductions of time spent by children in foster care and increased rates of reunification - saving money and reducing trauma.

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  • Analyzing the risk

    November 05, 2020 |

    Boulder Weekly |

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    1500-3000 Words

    Response Location: United States, Boulder County, Colorado

    The Colorado Pretrial Assessment Tool uses a formula to weigh the risk of releasing someone from jail while they await trial. While prosecutors say the tool is better than nothing, critics, backed by a study of the tool's effects, say it disproportionately harms people of color and people experiencing homelessness. Risk assessment algorithms consider a number of facts about a defendant's past and present to predict whether they can leave jail without committing new crimes or failing to make court appearances. But because they penalize already-overpoliced populations, they are not considered objective.

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  • Biden embraces drug courts, but do they actually work?

    November 02, 2020 |

    The Boston Globe |

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    800-1500 Words

    Response Location: United States

    Drug courts can help some people with serious drug problems who face serious criminal charges, if such court programs are run carefully, based on evidence-based approaches. But, too often, such courts – which push criminal defendants into treatment as an alternative to incarceration – can do more harm than good. The proof of drug courts' effectiveness is mixed, and fairly thin. Thousands of such courts exist, based on widespread political support for an approach seen as less punitive. But many critics say the courts' track record overall is weak and their approach can be just another form of punishment.

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  • The cycle of punitive justice starts in schools. Eric Butler is showing kids and teachers how to break it.

    November 01, 2020 |

    Mother Jones |

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    Over 3000 Words

    Response Location: United States, Selma, Alabama

    Hundreds of schools nationwide use restorative justice to respond to student disciplinary problems differently. In place of police, arrests, and suspensions, restorative practices emphasize conflict mediation through dialogue, asking how to hold people accountable without necessarily punishing them. Such programs have helped reduce suspensions and referrals to criminal or juvenile courts markedly, and reduced racial disparities. This story follows one man, a formerly incarcerated murder victim's brother, as he takes on the difficult task of introducing restorative practices to punishment-minded schools.

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  • Two years in, Maryland leads most other states in use of ‘red flag' gun law

    October 23, 2020 |

    The Baltimore Sun |

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    1500-3000 Words

    Response Location: United States, Maryland

    Two years after Maryland adopted a law allowing for court orders denying gun access to people at high risk of harming themselves or others, police and the public have invoked the law far more often than in most states with similar laws. It is difficult to prove that domestic-violence assaults or suicides have been prevented. But advocates and law enforcement officials say they have seen that effect. Research has documented that extreme-risk protection orders, as such laws are known, can prevent suicides. Credit for the law's use goes to police training and 24/7 court access for emergency hearings.

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  • San Juan County expands in-person voting on the Navajo Nation during the pandemic

    October 18, 2020 |

    The Salt Lake Tribune |

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    1500-3000 Words

    Response Location: Navajo Nation, United States, Utah

    A legal settlement in Utah expanded access to voting on Navajo Nations and influenced similar settlements in Arizona. All registered voters receive a mail-in ballot, but counties also offer early voting and election-day polling locations, where Navajo translators are available. Counties run bilingual radio, print, and social media ads to inform residents about their voting options. The hybrid in-person and mail-in system boosted turnout of active voters in San Juan County’s 2018 election by 10 percentage points from 2014, when the lawsuit was filed because the county closed in-person polling places.

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  • A Special Court Keeping Native Americans Out of Jail

    October 12, 2020 |

    70 Million |

    Podcast |

    Over 15 Minutes

    Response Location: United States, Penobscot Indian Island Reservation, Maine

    The Penobscot Nation's Healing to Wellness Court is a drug court, diverting people charged with drug offenses from possible fines and jail into therapy. But it has an added cultural element, providing traditional healing approaches alongside mainstream behavioral therapy. The cultural piece recognizes that Native Americans' historical trauma and disconnect from their culture can contribute to the problems that lead to addiction. The court is far less expensive than jail or prison, and its participants have not been jailed for failing treatment in more than two years.

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  • A Broken Bond: How New York Judges are Getting Around Bail Reform Audio icon

    October 12, 2020 |

    New York Focus |

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    1500-3000 Words

    Response Location: United States, New York, New York

    A key part of New York state's bail system reform legislation gave judges the ability to use alternative forms of bail designed to be more affordable to more people. But, by giving judges broad discretion, the law left large loopholes that judges have used to undercut the law's purpose. In addition to the two standard forms of bail – payment in cash or a nonrefundable fee to a bail bonds company – the law allowed for cost-free or refundable-deposit bonds that judges either have avoided using or have turned into a new costly obligation, leaving thousands to sit in jail pending trial.

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  • The Obama Justice Department Had a Plan to Hold Police Accountable for Abuses. The Trump DOJ Has Undermined It.

    September 29, 2020 |

    ProPublica |

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    1500-3000 Words

    Response Location: United States

    One of the most powerful tools used to reform policing practices, widely credited with restoring public faith in such troubled departments as the Los Angeles Police Department, is called a consent decree. The U.S. Justice Department sues cities where police abuses are seen as rampant. Then, under the watchful eye of a judge and independent monitor, the department agrees to a package of reforms. Under the Trump Justice Department, though, the tool has gone unused in new cases. In existing cases, the government has become passive, allowing cities to flout their agreements without consequence.

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