Participants sitting in a small circle share their personal experiences in the San Quentin Protestant Chapel Criminal justice reform took center stage at a San Quentin State Prison forum that brought together inmates, social justice advocates, formerly incarcerated citizens and public officials. “Reform has to change, as we all together are changing,” said Assemblymember Timothy Grayson, D-14th District, Concord. “We all still are rehabilitating. When I leave here, I’m going to tell people I just came from a place called ‘Project … [Read more...] about Prisoners contributed their input on criminal justice reform
Criminal Justice
Ida B. Wells: early Black journalist and activist
Ida B. Wells Before Black Lives Matter, and before former San Francisco 49er Colin Kaepernick took a knee, there was Ida B. Wells. She was a pioneering journalist with a social conscience who laid the foundations of resistance to racial injustice and violence against Black people. “Out of their own mouths, murderers shall be condemned,” wrote Wells in A Red Record, referring to murder by lynching. Beyond her journalism, Wells, who died in 1931, devoted her life to social justice and activism. Her special cause was to open the … [Read more...] about Ida B. Wells: early Black journalist and activist
San Quentin News hosts fundraiser gala for community supporters
The award-winning San Quentin News has become one of the few prison projects ever to hold its own fundraising gala in California. The Nov. 23 inaugural event, hailed as “historic,” took place at Marin Shakespeare Company’s headquarters in San Rafael and was attended by 43 supporters, who donated more than $2,000 for the newspaper. The dinner, which was well attended despite the rain, attracted formerly incarcerated persons, current volunteers and community members interested in social justice. Although the paper’s staff … [Read more...] about San Quentin News hosts fundraiser gala for community supporters
Thu Hồi Án Phạt
Dựa theo luật California Penal Code 1170(d) mới được ban hành, hầu như tất cả tù nhân ở California đều có thể hội đủ điều kiện được tòa xét lại án và giảm án. Phương thức luật mới này cũng đã được ghi rỏ trong sách quy luật dành cho tù nhân, sách California Code of Regulations (CDCR), Title 15, section 3076, Recall of Commitment Recommendation Circumstances. Quy luật án phạt mục 1170(d)(1) của California cho phép Bộ Tổng Trưởng của Bộ Học Tập và Cải Huấn (CDCR), hoặc người đại diện của bộ được đề nghị với tòa thu hồi án phạt … [Read more...] about Thu Hồi Án Phạt
California Correctional Peace Officers Association emerged during 2018 election
After almost a decade out of the spotlight, the California Correctional Peace Officers Association (CCPOA) re-emerged when they bought two television commercials for two Democrats: Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom for governor and Assemblymember Tony Thurmond for superintendent of public instruction. The commercials cost the union $1 million dollars, the Los Angeles Times reports. Though it has remained politically active, the CCPOA flew under the radar during the last decade, compared to a previous strategy involving bold statewide campaigns. … [Read more...] about California Correctional Peace Officers Association emerged during 2018 election
Prominent attorney notes First Step Act is insufficient
Opponents of President Trump’s new criminal justice reform say that the new law doesn’t do enough and will set a bad precedent. “Donald Trump claims he’s taking a step toward desperately needed criminal justice reform but he’s not,” wrote Keith Wattley in an Op-ed in The New York Times. Wattley is a prominent criminal justice advocate and attorney in California. At issue is the bi-partisan supported legislation known as the First Step Act, which was signed into law by President Trump on Dec. 21. “The First Step Act has … [Read more...] about Prominent attorney notes First Step Act is insufficient
Recall of sentence may allow time reduction for prisoners
Nearly all California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) prisoners may be eligible to have a court reconsider and reduce their sentence, according to new rules. The prisoners’ rulebook outlines the procedure in the California Code of Regulations (CCR), Title 15, section number 3076, Recall of Commitment Recommendation Circumstances. California Penal Code Section 1170(d)(1) allows the Agency Secretary of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) or its designee to recommend, at any … [Read more...] about Recall of sentence may allow time reduction for prisoners
Parole and probation create huge drain on state resources
Parole and probation are creating a huge drain on some state resources, according to The Crime Report. “Probation and parole were envisioned to help reduce the prison population and provide some structure and aid to those re-entering society. However, these systems have metastasized into a monstrous drain on state resources, even as they have damaged the lives of the formerly incarcerated,” the Nov. 19 story stated. The report cited the Pennsylvania system of supervised release as an example of draining state resources. … [Read more...] about Parole and probation create huge drain on state resources
Louisiana strikes down one of the last remaining Jim Crow laws
Louisiana’s justice system is moving into the 21st century after voters struck down one of the last remaining Jim Crow laws allowing juries to convict people with split verdicts, according to NOLA. com/The Times-Picayune. Louisiana was the only state in the nation where a verdict of 11-1 or 10-2 from a 12-person jury could result in a person receiving a life-without-the-possibility-of-parole sentence. The new law now requires juries to have an unanimous decision for a conviction, which ended this 138 year Jim Crow … [Read more...] about Louisiana strikes down one of the last remaining Jim Crow laws
Death penalty dying according to author John Grisham
Seventy-five percent of the 141 prisoners on North Carolina’s Death Row would face radically different prosecutions today under reforms enacted in recent years, The News & Observer reports. “Almost none would get the death penalty. For some, the charges would be dropped,” wrote John Grisham, a best-selling author and former defense lawyer who now is on the board of the Innocence Project of New York. “The death penalty is dying, not because of the courage of lawmakers or judges, but because of the compassion shown by jurors … [Read more...] about Death penalty dying according to author John Grisham