Wisconsin’s Governor Tony Evers, whose campaign pledged to cut his state’s prison population in half, has instead recommended a $259 million expenditure to build more prisons. According to Matt Kettle of MacIver News Service, the governor submitted a proposal to build seven major Department of Corrections (DOC) projects. This is a six-fold increase from his predecessor, Gov. Scott Walker, who recommended $41.68 million in DOC capital financing. “The spending is just mind-blowing,” said state Rep. Michael Schraa (ROshkosh), chairman of … [Read more...] about Wisconsin governor submits proposal to build more prisons
Wisconsin
Wisconsin ends harsh treatment of youth
Wisconsin prison officials have reached a legal settlement aimed at bringing sweeping criminal justice reform to its youth prisons. The settlement provides for “broad changes at the state’s troubled youth prison, (which) include banning guards from using pepper spray, ending solitary confinement for rule-breakers and limiting mechanical restraints and strip searches,” The Associated Press reported in June. Pending approval from a federal judge, the settlement would include $1 million for ACLU’s attorney fees. ACLU represented the … [Read more...] about Wisconsin ends harsh treatment of youth
Court order gives defense lawyers a raise
Court-appointed lawyers in Wisconsin are getting a raise in an order meant to address a chronic lack of attorneys willing to take on public defense cases. In May, the Wisconsin Supreme Court ordered that private attorneys assigned to defend cases must be paid $100 an hour—up from $70—beginning in 2020. While defense lawyers welcome the higher rate they say it may not reach far enough, as the court declined to declare lower rates unreasonable. The Wisconsin Public Defender’s Office assigns about 40 percent of its cases to private … [Read more...] about Court order gives defense lawyers a raise
The over use of pepper spray on juveniles
Guards at a Wisconsin youth detention facility were found to have pepper-sprayed teenage inmates more than 100 times in the first six months of the year, reports the Wisconsin State Journal. The information was based on a report filed by the state Department of Corrections in federal court. “One inmate at the Lincoln Hills School for Boys and Copper Lake School for Girls in Irma was pepper-sprayed 12 times between January and June … but the majority of the 51 inmates sprayed were pepper-sprayed four or fewer times,” Molly Beck reported. The … [Read more...] about The over use of pepper spray on juveniles