Prison reform

Benefits of Prison Reform

 I received a wonderful article on an effective prison industries program that once operated in the Lansing State Correctional Facility in Lansing, Kansas. The article described a partnership between a private company and officials in the Kansas State prison system. The progressive program would work well in any prison setting, contributing to safer communities, safer […]

Prison Reform: It’s More Expensive to Do Nothing

We received a message about a new documentary film dealing with criminal justice reform andwe are pleased to post this link to the film’s trailer; it’s an important project that is worthy of support. “‘It’s More Expensive to Do Nothing’ is the definitive documentary about what actually works in modern criminal justice. The film is by […]

Another Call for Prison Reform in the United States

Here is an excellent editorial from The Seattle Times on 8/15/2010 calling for prison reform: America behind bars: The time is ripe for prison reform Neal Peirce / Syndicated columnist For hard-to-defend reasons, and at staggering fiscal cost, the United States incarcerates people at a rate five times Great Britain’s, nine times Germany’s, 12 times […]

Prison Reform: In The News

Here are links to a couple of timely articles discussing the issue of much-needed prison reform in America http://www.economist.com/node/16636027 Rough justice in America Too many laws, too many prisoners Never in the civilised world have so many been locked up for so little Jul 22nd 2010 | Spring, Texas http://www.aolnews.com/surge-desk/article/will-president-barack-obama-take-on-prison-reform/19577278 Will Obama Take On Prison Reform?

Larry King Discusses Prison Reform

Below is the prelinimary transcript from Larry King’s show (7/23/2010) discussing prison reform: http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1007/23/lkl.01.html CNN LARRY KING LIVE / Saving Lives on the Inside / Aired July 23, 2010 – 21:00   ET THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) LARRY KING, HOST: […]

F is Still For Failure

Read F is Still For Failure by Michael Santos on Change.org: http://criminaljustice.change.org/blog/view/f_is_still_for_failure

Catastrophe in the Gulf: Utilize Prisoners as Manpower

Wednesday, 2 June 2010 Early this morning I heard an NPR broadcast report that Attorney General Eric Holder had traveled to New Orleans to investigate the massive oil spill caused by British Petroleum. Mr. Holder announced that the Justice Department had opened a criminal investigation into the disaster, and that if the investigation concluded that […]

The Freedom to Write

Two recent articles (links below) describe the BOPs revision of  the CFR (Code of Federal Regulations) policy statement governing prisoners’ rights to write for the public with a byline! Read the revised CFR details here: http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2010/pdf/2010-9373.pdf http://www.allgov.com/Controversies/ViewNews/Prisoners_Win_Right_to_Work_as_Reporters_100427 Prisoners Win Right to Work as Reporters Tuesday, April 27, 2010 Inmates in federal penitentiaries will now be able […]

New article on Prison Reform

New article by Michael on the Huffington Post: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/michael-santos/call-for-prison-reform_b_543332.html

Prison Lobbyists vs Prison Reform

Read Michael’s recent posts on Change.org: Most Popular Posts by Michael Santos What Happened to Prison Reform? Do Longer Prison Sentences Make the Public Safer? The View from Inside: Prison Time Doesn’t Equal Justice Take Action on Long-Term Imprisonment Bring Back Federal Parole And here’s a related article addressing the issue of prison lobbyists vs. […]

Michael Hamden is Mad As Hell About the Failed U.S. Prison System

The following article is featured on Change.org http://criminaljustice.change.org/blog/view/mad_as_hell_about_the_failed_us_prison_system Mad As Hell About the Failed U.S. Prison System by Michael Hamden category: Prison Reform Published March 10, 2010 @ 05:34AM PT Yeah, I’m angry. I’m all riled up because our misguided criminal justice policies destroy individuals, families and entire communities. I’m steamed because at a time […]

Prison Administrators Should Not Discourage Successful Adjustments

Many years have passed since I read A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens. When I read the story, I was locked inside the impenetrable walls of the United States Penitentiary in Atlanta. I was in my early 20s then, and staring down the long end of a 45-year prison sentence. A character from […]

President Obama… Answer This

This is fantastic! Check out: http://www.openmediaboston.org/node/990 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F34p0YiSp8g&feature=player_embedded What it’s about: 1. Alienation of people: We are creating refugees amongst our own people. Inmates come back not feeling like they are part of their own community; not knowing “we the people” means them too. 2. Break up of families: unreasonable prison policies and a culture of […]

Prison Reform

Earlier this year, Senator Jim Webb introduced a bill in the senate to establish a committee that would study the need for reform of the entire criminal justice system. His announcement came with a considerable amount of media attention. Parade magazine featured a front-page spread, and numerous other national publications publicized the proposed legislation. Over […]

Community Leaders in Taft Camp

Carole and I are grateful for opportunities to contribute to the lives of others.  A few weeks ago, David and Tuvia, two men who recently joined our community at Taft Camp, kindly introduced us to their wives, Judy and Gila.  Our limited time with family in the visiting room is precious, so we can’t afford […]