WBC super featherweight champion Andy Vences with facilitators and participants of the YOP program On January 9th 2019, Valley State Prison (VSP) held its second annual youth offender program (YOP) graduation to recognize the graduating YOP class of 2019 for completion of a year dedicated to their rehabilitation. It was a great day for all those who attended. Those in attendance included R. Fisher, jr. (VSP warden) and his administration, VSP staff, 75 YOP graduates, who also had the opportunity to invite two family members each to … [Read more...] about Valley State Prison holds second annual YOP graduation
Youth Offender
Once facing a lifetime behind bars, some now offered a chance at freedom
Juveniles sentenced to die in California prisons now have the chance to go home—if they can prove they have rehabilitated. To help them achieve that goal, two attorneys are providing workshops to help juvenile offenders prepare for the Board of Parole Hearings that will determine their fate. “(Elizabeth) Calvin and (Heidi) Rummel are working to help those still behind bars prepare for parole hearings that they never expected to have.” That is why the pair went to Corcoran in September and were at Kern Valley State Prison a few weeks … [Read more...] about Once facing a lifetime behind bars, some now offered a chance at freedom
Jóvenes encarcelados encaran discriminación en sentencias
Las herramientas para evaluar - el riesgo que representan los ofensores fueron diseñadas para disminuir prejuicio a la hora de dictar una sentencia, sin embargo podrían estar causando discriminación contra los infractores juveniles, reporta Wendy Sawyer del Prison Policy Initiative. Esta evaluación toma en consideración muchos factores que pueden incrementar el riesgo de estas personas, los cuales incluyen antecedentes criminales y la edad. Los jueces utilizan estas herramientas para dictar sentencia. Las audiencias de libertad condicional … [Read more...] about Jóvenes encarcelados encaran discriminación en sentencias
Kid CAT Chairman Si Dang’s 2019 youth address
For many of us who are incarcerated, the ultimate dream is freedom. The question of whether we will achieve that dream, however, often lies in our pursuit of it. Kid CAT members My name is Si Dang, and I am the new chairman of Kid CAT. Over the last 22 years, I have pursued my freedom in a variety of ways, many of them dysfunctional and leading me right back to where I started: without freedom and with no meaningful change in who I was. It was not until six years ago that I finally tapped into my courage and begin facing my … [Read more...] about Kid CAT Chairman Si Dang’s 2019 youth address
Risk assessment tools designed against youth offenders
Risk assessment tools designed to decrease prejudice in sentencing may be causing discrimination toward youth offenders, reports Wendy Sawyer for the Prison Policy Initiative. These risk assessment tools score people based on many factors that can add to risk, including criminal history and age. Judges use them when sentencing, and parole boards rely on them to determine parole suitability. “Eighteen-year-old defendants have risk scores that are, on average, twice as high as 40-year-old defendants,” law professors Megan T. Stevenson and … [Read more...] about Risk assessment tools designed against youth offenders
Kid CAT curriculum now available
Attention Readers: Kid CAT Childhood development curriculum and facilitator manual is now available. If you are interested in creating a Kid CAT branch/youth offender support group at your institution, please have your sponsor/volunteer or community partnership manager contact Kid CAT Speaks c/o San Quentin News, 1 Main Street, San Quentin, CA 94964 for a copy of our curriculum and facilitator’s manual. The curriculum’s objective is to help participants address the root causes of criminal thinking, childhood trauma and violent … [Read more...] about Kid CAT curriculum now available
CA court orders new board hearing for youth offender William Palmer
A California State Court of Appeal ruled that the Board of Parole Hearings (Board) denied parole without considering the youth of William Palmer, who committed kidnapping for robbery as a juvenile. The court ordered the board to give Palmer a new parole hearing and consider his age at the time of the crime. “Considering the Board’s statutory obligation to give “great weight” to those (youth) factors, its decision to find Palmer unsuitable for release, despite the presence of almost all the variables the Board itself has deemed indicative of … [Read more...] about CA court orders new board hearing for youth offender William Palmer
Homeless center helps to reduce overdoses of addicted teens
A homeless center for youths in San Francisco has found success reducing overdoses and helping addicted teens find sobriety through harm reduction. “(We) now have a suboxone clinic at our syringe access site! This is a huge lifesaver, removing bureaucratic roadblocks from the paths of people who want to get off opiates,” said Mary Howe, executive director of Homeless Youth Alliance (HYA) in San Francisco. “Now young people, who are in withdrawal, can come to HYA’s site—a place where they already feel safe—and have a consultation with our … [Read more...] about Homeless center helps to reduce overdoses of addicted teens
Former youth offenders start Kid CAT program at Lancaster
The successful San Quentin Kid CAT program for youth offenders is expanding to Lancaster Prison, thanks to help from three former inmates. “It was really the guys inside’s hunger to get the program,” explained Tommy Winfrey, who left San Quentin in 2016. “There was a hunger there to change their lives. I saw the same concern and willingness to change that I witnessed during my time at San Quentin.” Kid CAT alumni Winfrey, Philip Melendez and Anouthinh Pangthong recently visited Lancaster to help them start their own Kid CAT chapter. After … [Read more...] about Former youth offenders start Kid CAT program at Lancaster
Kid CAT banquet honors the forgotten voices of youth
Kid CAT celebrated the “forgotten voices” of youth at its 2018 annual banquet. “Tonight’s Banquet was about bringing awareness to the youths, who think that their voices are not being heard and are afraid to express how they feel to their parents or caretakers,” said Si Dang, Kid CAT chairman. Kid CAT is a group of men who committed their crimes as juveniles and are serving adult sentences. Capturing the night’s theme of “forgotten voices” was a series of speakers, actors and musicians who dug into the topics of foster care, … [Read more...] about Kid CAT banquet honors the forgotten voices of youth