24 new reports on felony disenfranchisement, probation, drugs, and more.

Criminal Justice Research Library for August 13, 2024 Bringing you the latest in empirical research about mass incarceration

We've The Prison Policy Initiative has added 24 new reports to the Research Library [[link removed]]: Community Impact [[link removed]] Afterward [[link removed]] by Alabama Appleseed Center for Law & Justice, April, 2023

"Fewer than half [of respondents] felt better after the person who killed their loved one was incarcerated. Fewer than half felt safer." When You Are a Hammer, Every Problem Looks Like a Nail: Why Building New Prisons Will Do Nothing To Solve Old Problems in Alabama [[link removed]] by Alabama Appleseed Center for Law and Justice, May, 2020

"Alabama has the distinction of being the only state in the country to violate CRIPA, the Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act, throughout its entire prison system." Conditions of Confinement [[link removed]] United States Department of Justice Investigation of Alabama's State Prisons for Men [[link removed]] by Alabama Appleseed Center for Law and Justice, October, 2019

"A warden at Holman, a maximum-security prison, informed the DOJ that on any given day there are "probably 11" security staff per shift for the entire complex of 800 prisoners." Drug Policy [[link removed]] A Bitter Pill [[link removed]] by Alabama Appleseed Center for Law & Justice, September, 2022

"While it's rare for people whose only offense is simple possession to land in prison, it is far from unheard of...Convictions for these collateral offenses can be what...sends them to prison for crimes that are driven by addiction, not malice." Economics of Incarceration [[link removed]] Shadow Budgets: How mass incarceration steals from the poor to give to the prison [[link removed]] by Prison Policy Initiative, May, 2024

"Most [welfare fund] policies are so vague that prison officials enjoy wide discretion to spend incarcerated peoples' money as they please -- sometimes spending it on luxury perks for staff." Workers Doing Time Must Be Protected by Job Safety Laws [[link removed]] by National Employment Law Project, April, 2024

"Excessive carceral costs and fees coupled with strong incentives for early release push incarcerated workers into accepting dangerous assignments." A Cost-Benefit Analysis: The Impact of Ending Slavery and Involuntary Servitude as Criminal Punishment and Paying Incarcerated Workers Fair Wages [[link removed]] by Edgeworth Economics and Worth Rises, January, 2024

"Once the adjustments to paying incarcerated workers are achieved the total fiscal benefits to incarcerated workers, their families and children, crime victims, and society at large is between $26.8 billion and $34.7 billion per year." Revenue Over Public Safety [[link removed]] by Brennan Center for Justice, July, 2022

"Officials seeking to alleviate prison and jail overcrowding by renting space from other jurisdictions have created a market in incarcerated people...federal government has exacerbated demand for bed space, such as through immigration enforcement." Felon Disenfranchisement [[link removed]] Out of Step: U.S. Policy on Voting Rights in Global Perspective [[link removed]] by Sentencing Project, June, 2024

"Among other types of reforms, most U.S. states no longer disenfranchise individuals permanently for life and many no longer disenfranchise individuals upon release from incarceration." General [[link removed]] Mass Incarceration: The Whole Pie 2024 [[link removed]] by Prison Policy Initiative, March, 2024

"Looking at the "whole pie" of mass incarceration opens up conversations about where it makes sense to focus our energies at the local, state, and national levels." The First Step Act's Prison Reforms [[link removed]] by Brennan Center for Justice, September, 2022

"The Act excludes those convicted of many crimes [from receiving Earned Time Credits]. These exclusions prevent nearly half of the federal prison population from benefiting from credits...[and] appear to serve no policy purpose." Health impact [[link removed]] Eight Key Considerations for Successful Implementation of New Medicaid Reentry Policies [[link removed]] by Health and Reentry Project, June, 2024

"Successful implementation of these policies requires that correctional facilities have data and IT systems that can share eligibility, enrollment, and pertinent patient clinical information across community and correctional systems." Medicaid's New Role in Advancing Reentry: Key Policy Changes [[link removed]] by Health and Reentry Project, March, 2024

"The minimum services states must provide to be approved for a waiver are: case management, medication assisted treatment (MAT), and a 30-day supply of medications upon release. States can go above and beyond these three services..." Recommendations for Medicaid Coverage of Opioid Use Disorder Services in Jails and Prisons [[link removed]] by Health and Reentry Project and Viaduct Consulting, LLC, January, 2024

This slide deck covers findings from three reports encouraging state and local governments to expand access to quality, evidence-based treatment for opioid use disorder in prisons and jails by leveraging Medicaid coverage. Breaking Ground: How California is Using Medicaid to Improve the Health of People Leaving Incarceration [[link removed]] by Health and Reentry Project, May, 2023

"Incarcerated adults who are enrolled in Medi-Cal and meet specific criteria and all Medi-Cal/CHIP-enrolled youth in youth correctional settings will qualify for Medi-Cal pre-release services." Death Traps An examination of the routine, violent deaths of people in the custody of the State of Alabama [[link removed]] by Alabama Appleseed Center for Law and Justice, November, 2020

"2020 is on pace to be one of the most deadly years on record in Alabama prisons, with deaths by homicide between January and July at 10 compared to seven for the same time period in 2019." Poverty and wealth [[link removed]] Taken for a Ride How Excessive Ticketing Propels Alabama Drivers Into a Cycle of Debt, Incarceration, and Poverty [[link removed]] by Alabama Appleseed Center for Law & Justice, July, 2023

"The municipal court judge in Jacksonville won't issue a warrant of arrest until a person fails to appear in court three times for a given charge...In Anniston, however, a person can be arrested after missing a single court date." Probation and parole [[link removed]] Hepatitis C-related knowledge and attitude among adults on probation in a large US city [[link removed]] by Matthew S. Minturn et al, July, 2024

"Continuing to look for ways to educate and engage adult probation clients in testing and treatment for HCV should be a priority for practitioners, public health professionals, and law enforcement professionals." Sentencing Policy and Practices [[link removed]] The Second Look Movement: A Review of the Nation's Sentence Review Laws [[link removed]] by Sentencing Project, May, 2024

"In addition to California, four states - Illinois, Minnesota, Oregon, and Washington - have enacted prosecutor-initiated resentencing laws that allow prosecutors to request the court to reconsider a sentence." Justice Reinvestment Initiative: Challenges and Impact [[link removed]] by Louisiana Legislative Auditor, February, 2024

"[Those] released based on Justice Reinvestment Initiative good time changes do not appear to return to custody at a higher rate than the overall return rate." Condemned: The habitual felony offender act in Alabama [[link removed]] by Alabama Appleseed Center for Law and Justice, March, 2023

"At a minimum, Alabama should provide a mechanism for judges to review the sentences of people serving life without parole under the Habitual Federal Offender Act." Sexual offenses [[link removed]] Sex Offense Civil Commitment Minnesota's Failed Investment and the $100 Million Opportunity to Stop Sexual Violence [[link removed]] by Mitchell Hamline School of Law, April, 2024

"As of September 1, 2023, only 21 of the 946 people committed to the Minnesota Sex Offender Program have been fully discharged from the program (~2%), while at least 94 have died during their commitment (~10%)." Youth [[link removed]] Pediatric Health and System Impacts of Mass Incarceration, 2009-2020: A Matched Cohort Study [[link removed](24)00164-5/fulltext] by Samantha Boch et al, May, 2024

"Our study finds vast disparities between youth with documented probable contact to the justice system and matched youth." Protect and Redirect: America's Growing Movement to Divert Youth Out of the Justice System [[link removed]] by Sentencing Project, March, 2024

"Among the most promising recent developments in youth diversion is the growing focus on restorative justice alternatives to formal court processing." Please support our work [[link removed]]

Our work is made possible by private donations. Can you help us keep going? We can accept tax-deductible gifts online [[link removed]] or via paper checks sent to PO Box 127 Northampton MA 01061. Thank you!

Other news: Research roundup: Evidence that even one day in jail has immediate and lasting harms [[link removed]]

Pretrial detention is harmful from day one.

In this new briefing [[link removed]], we gathered the evidence that shows detention’s negative impact on criminal legal, social, and economic outcomes is worse than previously thought.

Advocacy Spotlight: Texas Jail Project [[link removed]]

One small organization in Texas is fighting to get answers for families of people who die in jails and forcing accountability from the jails they die in.

In our first-ever Advocacy Spotlight blog post [[link removed]], we look at how Texas Jail Project is working to find who is missing from the in-custody death reports and to compel accountability from jails.

FCC votes to slash prison and jail calling rates and ban corporate kickbacks [[link removed]]

New rules, the result of the bipartisan passage of the Martha Wright-Reed Fair and Just Communications Act, are a massive victory in the decades-long fight for prison and jail communication justice.

In this recent briefing [[link removed]], we explain what these new rules will mean for incarcerated people and their families.

Please support our work [[link removed]]

Our work is made possible by private donations. Can you help us keep going? We can accept tax-deductible gifts online [[link removed]] or via paper checks sent to PO Box 127 Northampton MA 01061. Thank you!

Our other newsletters General Prison Policy Initiative newsletter ( archives [[link removed]]) Ending prison gerrymandering ( archives [[link removed]])

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