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Dear Reader,
All the news this month is exciting. I haven’t much more to add. So I’ll limit it to these words from last month’s NetWORKS column, which have been inspiring me since then: “As the world around us gets more and more dangerous, unstable, and unjust, the fight for a better world based on equality, justice, and compassion for all becomes the only game in town worth playing.”
Keep cool in this heat-wave. (My trick is to put a wet towel or scarf around my neck and cool off as it evaporates.)
The Editor
Table of Contents
- The Parole Report: how does 56% sound?!
- The Legislative Report - some bills to keep an eye on
- This is what Advocacy looks like: HALT passed in the Assembly
- People Power - we need to reach all New Yorkers.
- Ernest Henry is honored.
- Prisoners R People 2! celebrate.
- The progress of Decarceration
1. The Parole Report. For a more detailed report please send
a request to PrisonActionNetwork@gmail.com.
The chart below is of all decisions including A1VOs.
APRIL 2018 ALL DECISIONS
|
|
|
|
HOUSING OR INTERVIEW FACILITY
|
Denied
|
Released
|
Total
|
Adirondack
|
3
|
5
|
8
|
Albion-female
|
4
|
30
|
34
|
Altona
|
8
|
8
|
16
|
Attica
|
7
|
1
|
8
|
Auburn
|
3
|
5
|
8
|
Bare hill
|
9
|
13
|
22
|
Bedford hills
|
10
|
12
|
22
|
Cape vincent
|
5
|
7
|
12
|
LOCATION
|
Denied
|
Released
|
Total
|
Cayuga
|
4
|
8
|
12
|
Clinton
|
7
|
5
|
12
|
Collins
|
7
|
17
|
24
|
Coxsackie
|
6
|
5
|
11
|
Downstate
|
5
|
17
|
22
|
Eastern
|
2
|
|
2
|
Edgecombe
|
|
1
|
1
|
Elmira
|
14
|
6
|
20
|
Fishkill
|
7
|
23
|
30
|
Five points
|
3
|
9
|
12
|
Franklin
|
3
|
15
|
18
|
Gouverneur
|
8
|
16
|
24
|
Gowanda
|
14
|
22
|
36
|
Gowanda sop
|
6
|
2
|
8
|
Great meadow
|
5
|
4
|
9
|
Green haven
|
5
|
8
|
13
|
Greene
|
9
|
19
|
28
|
Groveland
|
9
|
19
|
28
|
Hale creek-asac
|
2
|
4
|
6
|
Hudson
|
3
|
3
|
6
|
Lakeview
|
2
|
8
|
10
|
Lincoln
|
|
5
|
5
|
Livingston
|
4
|
6
|
10
|
Marcy
|
14
|
6
|
20
|
Midstate
|
25
|
8
|
33
|
Mohawk
|
10
|
8
|
18
|
Ogdensburg
|
3
|
5
|
8
|
Orleans
|
6
|
9
|
15
|
Other agency
|
3
|
|
3
|
Otisville
|
6
|
10
|
16
|
Riverview
|
9
|
7
|
16
|
Rochester
|
2
|
3
|
5
|
Shawangunk
|
4
|
1
|
5
|
Sing sing
|
7
|
3
|
10
|
Southport
|
6
|
|
6
|
Sullivan
|
1
|
3
|
4
|
Taconic-asactc
|
1
|
|
1
|
Taconic-female
|
7
|
6
|
13
|
Ulster
|
4
|
7
|
11
|
LOCATION
|
Denied
|
Released
|
Total
|
Upstate
|
11
|
2
|
13
|
Wallkill
|
2
|
5
|
7
|
Walsh med cntr
|
1
|
5
|
6
|
Washington
|
2
|
11
|
13
|
Watertown
|
5
|
8
|
13
|
Wende
|
6
|
2
|
8
|
Woodbourne
|
9
|
6
|
15
|
Wyoming
|
16
|
11
|
27
|
TOTAL DECISIONS
|
Denied: 334
|
Released: 429
|
Total: 763
|
|
|
|
|
|
TOTAL. RELEASE RATE:
|
56%
|
|
Just a few years ago the release rates were in the 20 percent range. It would still be there if you and a lot of other New Yorkers hadn't started speaking out about the injustices of a parole board that was essentially re-sentencing.
2. The Legislative Report
The state Legislature and the governor typically have two busy times during the six-month legislative session; when the state budget is due April 1 and when the session is in its final days in late June, before the 213 state lawmakers leave the Capitol for the year. This results in a sleepless flurry of voting in June in the respective chambers.
Building Bridges is only aware of one criminal justice bill we consider important that passed both houses and awaits the governor’s signature. It is a Weprin bill, A8340/S.6322, which directs DOCCS to undertake a study of Hepatitis C, a disease that is not conclusively understood. It is contagious and for people and their caregivers in heavily populated spaces, such as prison and homeless shelters, it is important to understand the extent of the risk and the options for prevention and treatment.
The Senate did not pass five voting reform bills, -LISTEN UP! THIS IS IMPORTANT!- including those which would allow early voting, automatic registration, flexibility to change party affiliation, pre-registration of 16 and 17 year olds and allowing those on parole to vote.
Cuomo passed an executive order in April that granted those on parole the right to vote; however, if Cuomo is unseated, the executive order could be reversed — unless it becomes a law, which would require the senate and the governor to vote on it. Because voting bills were not passed this year, it is no longer possible to have voting reform in time for the 2020 Presidential Election because in order to change the NYS Constitution, two successive legislatures have to pass a bill.
Bills we want to keep an eye on are the HALT bill (which passed in the Assembly), the Presumptive Parole Bill, and the Elder Parole Bill, all of which are described below. Most importantly we must watch S.2997A*** and its same as A.2350A
The presumptive Parole bill A.7546, sponsored by AM Weprin, creates a presumption of release and requires the Parole Board to release all individuals, unless there is a clear and unreasonable risk to public safety. It also prevents Parole from denying because “release is incompatible with the welfare of society”, and “will not so deprecate the seriousness of the crime as to undermine respect for the law.” It passed out of Corrections on June 6, 2017 by 7 to 3 and reported to Codes. This year, on January 3rd, it was referred to Codes.
The Senate same as bill, S.8346 is sponsored by Sen.Gustavo Rivera and sits in Crime Victims, Crime and Correction Committee.
Elder Parole bill A.0635a, also a Weprin bill, permits the Board of Parole to evaluate all inmates over the age of 55 who have served at least 15 years in prison for possible parole release. It does not mandate release, but allows the Board to make a public safety assessment to see whether an elderly inmate is safe to be released to parole supervision even if he or she has not completed his or her minimum sentence and to have the discretion to grant such release. On June 4, 2018 it passed the Correction Committee by a 9-3 vote. It passed with a favorable referral to Codes Committee. The Same As bill, S.8581, sponsored by Senator Hoylman, is sitting in the Senate’s Crime Committee.
Strengthening Visiting Bill A.7241A sponsored by Weprin, Codifies visiting, ensuring in-person visits are available to people who are incarcerated in New York State prisons and local correctional facilities. It establishes that video visits cannot replace in person visits.
Daily Visiting Bill A.10359 Weprin, Authorizes daily visits at all general confinement correctional facilities.
Prison Buses Bill. A7016A: Introduced by AM Carmen De La Rosa, Reinstates the prison visiting bus program that would provide families with bi-monthly free transportation from New York, Rochester, Syracuse and Albany to New York State prisons. Same as Bill S.5693, sponsored by Velmanette Montgomery to bring parents closer to their children There are multiple bills that would require NYS DOCCS to consider proximity to children when deciding which facility an incarcerated parent is assigned to:.
● S7757A/A10204 (Rivera/Weprin) Three-year Proximity Pilot placing 100 incarcerated parents at the facility of their designated security level that is closest to their children.
● S5701A/A7527 (Hamilton/Crespo) Three-year Proximity Pilot placing 200 incarcerated mothers at the facility of their designated security level that is closest to their children.
- ●S3727/A1272 (Montgomery/Rozic) Requires DOCCS to place incarcerated parents at facilities of their designated security level that are closest to their children. These are all worth fighting for, but if you don’t show up it won’t happen!
***And here’s the one that needs more than keeping an eye on. It will need some serious opposition by families and other advocates of family togetherness.
*** ”Lorraine’s Law”, S.2997A; sponsored by Sen. Lavalle “ increases from twenty-four to sixty months, the time for which reconsideration for parole for a violent felony offense shall be determined.”It has a same as Bill A 2350, sponsored in the Assembly by AM Theile. It passed the Senate in May 2017, and again in May 2018. It died in the Assembly in Jan 2018.
There is no information on the legislative website about who voted when Lorraine’s Bill was passed out of the Senate Committee (maybe because they always vote as a block?) but also not on the floor vote when it passed the Senate.????? [Ed: We have so much to learn…]..
3. This is what advocacy looks like: HALT Passed ! !
It took years and stepping out of our comfort zones to persuade our legislators to get behind it.
What a hard, long road…But because we did not give up and some really smart and dedicated people put their whole life into ending the cruelest punishment imaginable - putting individuals in a cell with no human interactions for days, months, years and even decades - the bill made it past the first huge hurdle. It was passed by the Assembly on June 12 with a vote of 99 to 45. Several Advocates were there. After the vote one of them started shouting “Thank You!” and then the whole group shouted it together. Jefferson Aubrey, the Assembly sponsor, was seen smiling and sending a sign of appreciation to them.
Congratulations and gratitude to everyone who worked so hard and long! An inspiration to all of us to keep on keeping on…” emailed one advocate when she heard the news.
Now the road will be even harder because we need to get a Democratic majority in the Senate (we’re not being partisan, it’s simply the fact) .before HALT will have a chance at passing in the Senate and and being signed by the governor When that day comes it will put NY on the map!. Now that we know how strong we are, we know it can happen. But we’ll We need to get everyone we know to VOTE.!
It’s a strong bill, it bans solitary confinement beyond 15 days, provides meaningful program-based alternatives, restricts the basis for using solitary confinement, bans even one day of solitary for young people, old people and individuals with mental and physical disabilities, and requires periodic public reporting to maintain accountability.
So after we cried with joy, danced with hope, and were amazed at what we accomplished, advocates got back to work:
We still have a long way to go and our advances have been met with great opposition. Law enforcement has launched a campaign to unseat new Parole Commissioners, and New York State Senators have passed bills that would devastate the lives of our loved ones in prison seeking parole.
Some of us started by calling the NYS ASSEMBLY to demand that they put our parole bills on the New York State Assembly floor for a vote. Call-in campaigns are effective and powerful. We know they work.
Others started planning a Rally and Speakout outside Governor Cuomo’s “Best of Broadway” Gala Fundraiser at the Plaza Hotel (768 Fifth Ave.).on Monday June 18th; Were you there?
We wrote Memos of Support for Presumptive Parole Bill (S.8346/A.7546) and Elder Parole Bill (S.8581/A.6354A). Both had passed the Assembly Correction Committee, but had yet to reach the Assembly floor. (See Art #14)
And then it was back to usual. A reminder was sent for Release Aging People in Prison Campaign's Monthly Coalition Meeting, Wednesday, June 20th at 6pm at the usual location. There was pizza, drinks and a lively discussion about the end of this year's legislative session. (RAPP Monthly Coalition meetings are usually held on the first Wednesday of every month. There will not be a coalition meeting on July 4th).
A multi-issue public education event in Senator Felder's District at the Kensington Public Library branch in Brooklyn on Sat. July 14, 2:30-4:30 pm (4207 18th Ave), was organized by some Challenging Incarceration members, including organizational members: CAIC, RAPP, Correctional Association of NY, and Coalition for Women Prisoners.
The work never stops. Five weeks before HALT passed in the Assembly, David George, one of the hardest-working advocates, had an OpEd in Truthout, the highly esteemed internet news outlet read by people all over the world. [On their home page they say that they “provide independent news and commentary on a daily basis and work to spark action by revealing systemic injustice and providing a platform for transformative ideas, through in-depth investigative reporting and critical analysis. With a powerful, independent voice, we will spur the revolution in consciousness and inspire the direct action that is necessary to save the planet and humanity.]
Here is a condensed version of the OpEd: (Send a SASE for the original.)
Changing parole boards is one step toward weakening mass incarceration
After recently voting to release Herman Bell, the NYS Parole Board has come under fire from law enforcement and some elected officials to reverse its decision so that Bell dies in prison. [Some state elected officials ] are calling on New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo to fire the commissioners who used their legal authority in favor of Bell's release.
The truth is, the Board is changing, and that is a good thing. For decades, the Parole Board was almost exclusively comprised of people with law enforcement and prosecutorial backgrounds. This meant that years and decades after being detained, arrested and prosecuted, parole applicants were tasked with pleading for their freedom from the same people who put them in prison in the first place.
In June 2017, after community advocacy efforts, Governor Cuomo and the GOP-majority Senate appointed and confirmed six new parole commissioners with experience in social work, psychology and other professional backgrounds that allow them to better assess who a person is today and how they have changed over time. During the same period, Cuomo chose to not reappoint three of the Board's most punitive commissioners whose six-year terms had expired. Two additional commissioners resigned over the last year, both of whom were former prosecutors. Such changes -- in addition to the modernization of the Board's regulations that better assess parole applicants for release based on who they are today -- have increased parole releases at no cost to public safety. New Yorkers should not only celebrate these changes, but also demand more from the governor and legislature. It's time for Governor Cuomo to fully embrace a positively trending Parole Board by firing commissioners Coppola and Smith, and fully staffing the Board to 19 commissioners who believe in individuals' ability to transform.
4. People Power: how to involve all New Yorkers
!t involves educating and inspiring more and more people to join in the struggle for justice and a better world. Here’s how Alliance of Families for Justice is doing it: Founder Soffiyah Elijah started by attracting a committed group of people who marched from NYC to Albany. That got attention! Her latest effort took place last weekend (June 29-July 1st ) when forty family members from all over the state headed to Powell House in Chatham NY for a weekend of community-building, empowerment, and healing. Organizing partners in various regions of the state: John Brown Lives! In the North Country, the Multicultural Resource Center in Ithaca, and PrisonersRPeople2 in Buffalo, each brought ten directly-impacted family members. The retreat and transportation was completely free for directly-impacted families, thanks to the generosity of many devoted donors.
Karima Amin of PrisonersRPeople2 will be leading a storytelling workshop to empower attendees to harness and process their stories. Soffiyah will lead morning meditations. They will discuss the challenges of reentry, coping with separation, mental health and general health, and self-care.
It will be filmed by interns from Washington Heights Expeditionary Learning School (WHEELS) who will use the video they make of AFJ for their “Better World Day” project. They chose AFJ because the mission of supporting and empowering directly-impacted families is personally meaningful to them.
One family at the retreat includes Frantz Michel, who says he is looking forward to bonding with his daughters; that it will be the first time that it will just be him and them. Frantz Michel grew up in East Flatbush, Brooklyn, a neighborhood that became notorious during the New York City crack era. He grew up in a strong nurturing family but the lure of the streets was stronger. He was convicted as a drug kingpin in his first felony case and sentenced in 2002 to life.
After serving 15 years, President Obama granted him clemency and on December 22, 2016 he returned to Brooklyn determined to make something of this second chance and hit the ground running. The co-founder of Guns Down!, his childhood friend Sean Pryor, was himself a victim of gun violence, and Frantz inspired him to reactivate the organization, this time with a focus on keeping the youth from picking up a gun in the first place. Frantz's family means everything to him, and for that reason, he is deeply supportive of and involved with AFJ's work.
Prison Action Network looks forward to the Video. P.S. We can’t keep ahead of that group! As I was writing this, a video of the families at Powell House showed up in our email inbox. We wish we could include it in this letter.….
5. Ernest Henry, host of Voices Beyond the Wall, was honored by the NYS Assembly on the last day of the NYS Legislative Session.
Remarks delivered by Carol on June 24, 2018 on Voices Beyond the Wall
“Welcome to the People’s House” said Assembly Member Jeff Aubrey the Speaker Pro Tempore of the NYS Assembly. He was speaking from a podium in the NYS Assembly to Ernest Henry. Yes, OUR Ernest Henry.
On Wednesday June 20th, Ernest was honored by the Assembly for the ten year anniversary of Voices Beyond the Wall. He was the guest of Assembly Member Didi Barrett who represents the area where the Vassar College Radio Station is located. During session, it is the custom of legislators to introduce constituents who have made significant accomplishments to celebrate them, and this was the last day of session.
There is a video on the Voices Beyond the Wall Facebook page that I encourage you to look at if possible, but it does not tell the whole story. It is just a brief glimpse into the day. I had the honor of accompanying Ernest to the Assembly. I truly wish that all of you could have been there also. I have been in the NYS Capitol countless times, but this visit was unlike any of the others. It will stand out in my memory forever. I will try to convey why this is the case before Ernest plays the audio clip of his Introduction by Assembly Member Barrett.
Ernest and I got to Albany early because it is often hard to find parking and we did not want to be late. We found one another after we parked in different parking lots, and walked over to the Capitol together. There was enough time for a stop at Dunkin Donuts so that Ernest could have the “breakfast of champions”—hot chocolate and two donuts - before we walked up what is called “the Million Dollar Staircase”. The historic staircase is made from really beautiful brown sandstone carved with intricate patterns and famous faces from history.
All are welcome to visit the NYS Assembly and there is a gallery which looks down on the Assembly floor where you may sit and watch the proceedings. Only legislators, their staff, and invited guests are allowed to be on the floor of the Chamber. The Sergeant-at-Arms Wayne Jackson was at the door and he controls who enters the Chamber. We announced our business and he granted us admission. Sergeant-at-Arms Jackson welcomed us to the Assembly and escorted us to front row seats on the floor.
Once I entered the room, I felt that I was in another world. It was like watching the Wizard of Oz when it turns from black and white to Technicolor. Outside the door we were ordinary people, but once we entered, Sergeant-at-Arms Jackson made us feel like we were the most special and important people in the room. I have never felt that level of hospitality before in my life. Outside the door, it was dark, quiet. In the room it was bright, colorful, cavernous and active like inside a bee hive. Red carpet, marble pillars, intricately painted colorful patterns painted on the walls. We were back in the year 1879 when the room was dedicated. Its Moorish-Gothic style maintained with the additions of modernity --microphones and electronic boards which record the vote of each Assembly Member.
A woman in a suit approached me in a friendly way and asked me why I was there. I had no idea who she was, but later found out she was Assembly Member Vivian Cook from Queens. I said, “My friend is being honored today and I am so proud of him.” “For what?” she asked. I said, “Because he is awesome.” And she said, “Of course! He was raised to be awesome, but what has he done?” I explained about Voices Beyond the Wall. And then Assembly Member Didi Barrett came to introduce herself and chat with us. She was extremely friendly, kind, and welcoming. The Assembly photographer came to take photos. I sat down so that Ernest would be alone with the Assembly member in the photos. Ernest would have none of that, and insisted that I be in the photo. I agreed because I saw that he would not accept no as an answer. That is who Ernest is. The radio show is not about him, even though he is the one who you hear the most from on the radio. It is about the community he has created through the airwaves on both sides of the wall. And it is about Kathy. Ernest was there to be honored, but Ernest is always quick to say that it is Ernest AND Kathy who are doing the show. Ernest was not given an opportunity to speak on the floor, but I know if he had been, the first word that would cross his lips is Kathy’s name and how she has been his partner on the show over the past decade. And that he NEVER could have done it without her. But I digress…
The photos were taken and then Assembly Member Barrett introduced us to Assembly Member David Weprin who was sitting right in front of us. He is the chair of the Assembly’s Corrections Committee and is from Queens.
Assembly Member Barrett left Ernest and me in our seats so she could take care of business. And then the proceedings started. Ernest stood and was recognized. There was thunderous applause and then the formal recognition was over. But then singly, over the next half hour, individual Assembly Members stopped over to talk to Ernest and shake his hand. I watched one Assembly Member who I knew, walk from the the very front to the back of the enormous Chamber especially to talk to Ernest. They all made special trips to shake his hand. I saw real warmth and appreciation in those small encounters.
We spent about one hour and fifteen minutes in that front row in the Assembly Chamber before we left the Technicolor world and entered back into the black and white where we were just two regular people. Two regular people who were hungry, so I took Ernest out to lunch to celebrate. It was a beautiful day, so we walked a short distance to a restaurant called Jack’s. It’s a traditional steak and seafood house and it has been in business for one hundred and five years. Starched white tablecloths, excellent service from professional waiters, and the place where the legislators and lobbyists go during session. It was empty because everyone was at the Capitol working, so we enjoyed having the place to ourselves. We savored our meals and conversation and then headed back up a hill towards our parking lots. A woman in her sixties was pushing a baby stroller with a cute lap dog in it. The dog caught Ernest’s eye and we stopped to talk to the woman. She told us what a full day the dog had had and that she was giving him a rest. And Ernest in his suit, with a tie picked out by Kathy, looking like a million bucks pet the dog. And the journey walking free in the world continued. The place where for us there are no strangers, just people waiting to become friends. It’s a beautiful world…
Prison Action Networks congratulates Ernest for his long standing commitment to the people he left inside by providing a way to unite them with their families on the outside, using the airwaves..
6. Join the Celebration with Prisoners Are People Too, Inc.
By Karima Amin
The month of June is such a special time with so many celebrations: graduations, weddings, family reunions, proms, my birthday (June 1st), Juneteenth, and the list goes on. PRP2 has so much to celebrate. Our speakers this month will highlight good news. The hope that I have written about for the last two months is coming to fruition as hard work pays off, minds are opened, policies change, and struggle continues without ceasing. PRP2 had its inception in the month of June 2005; BaBa Eng was released from prison in the month of June 2013; and Gerrod Bennett’s release from prison came in June of 2016. BaBa and Gerrod will be two of our four main speakers.
Many have heard BaBa Eng speak about the importance and value of Restorative Justice and Restorative Practices. Many have been trained by him in hubs throughout this city. Donna Habeeb, a PRP2 member and good friend, will talk about the ways in which her family has been positively impacted by a Restorative Conference which BaBa facilitated several months ago.
Gerrod Bennett will talk about his reentry experience, recounting the ups and downs which have ultimately led to his college graduation, after 22 years in State Prison and only two years on the outside. Reentry is very difficult, given the pressures that one faces adjusting to the world outside. Gerrod is a successful reentry candidate who beat the odds.
Sheila Hayes is someone who can speak effectively about the ways in which an incarcerated loved one’s imprisonment can impact the entire family. Supporting Robert “Seth” Hayes has been extremely challenging. According to the “Jericho Movement” website, “Seth first came up for parole in 1998, but prison officials have refused to release him, and are effectively punishing him for having been a member of the Black Panther Party and Black Liberation Army.” Still he has remained true to his ideals even after 45 years behind bars, medical maltreatment, and ten parole denials. Recent news has announced that his release from prison has been approved. [Ed. a/o July 2, the website lists him as released.]
BaBa Eng is our fourth designated speaker. He will talk about the importance of parolees now having the right to vote. On April 18, Governor Andrew Cuomo signed an executive order granting the right to vote to thousands of New York State citizens, no longer in prison, who are now on parole. BaBa will talk about the value of this decree and how it effects all of us.
I will talk about my visit to Auburn State Prison where I have been invited to speak at the prison’s Juneteenth Celebration. I have not had the opportunity to speak at a prison in quite some time so I am excited and grateful for this opportunity.
You’re invited to join us for the celebration at our next meeting, Monday, June 25, 2018 at the Rafi Greene Center located at 1423 Fillmore @ Glenwood in Buffalo, from 7:00- to -9:00pm.
[Prison Action Network hopes you had a wonderful celebration! ]
P.S. Unfortunately for us, PRP2 meetings are on the last week of the month, and Building Bridges is published in the first week of the next month. So by the time readers get this, the meeting will have taken place. If you’d like to know beforehand, we suggest you contact Karima Amin, 716-834-8438,karima@prp2.org; or BaBa Eng, 716-491-5319, g.babaeng@yahoo.com.
7. Decarceration is not progressing as hoped.
A recent report by the Vera Institute {BB will send the whole (short) article upon request and a SASE]reveals that prison populations have declined in half of the states. But when one digs deeper, exploring the complex relationship between local jails and state prisons, it becomes clear that true reform has been more elusive.The biggest surprise of all may be that progress toward decarceration has actually eluded many states where success has long seemed apparent—only the largest cities are sending fewer to prison and jail, while smaller cities and towns continue on a path of more and more incarceration. Ultimately, the United States cannot unwind mass incarceration if reformers remain fixated on state-level trends and solutions. The numbers show that ending mass incarceration requires reform everywhere: in states and in counties, in prisons and in jails. The damage wrought by its decades-long rise cannot be measured solely in prison and jail statistics. As incarceration ballooned, there was a concurrent shift toward more punitive conditions of confinement, as policymakers and courts prioritized measures meant to ensure institutional safety over the dignity and rights of incarcerated people. These harms rippled past prison walls into the families and communities left behind, and in collateral consequences that accompanied people returning from prison or jail. Such intergenerational impact is hard to quantify , and harder still to undo.
Reducing the number of people behind bars is only the first of many steps to counter the systemic harm of mass incarceration. But it is an important step.
From a report By Christian Henrichson, Research Director,Center on Sentencing and Corrections Vera Institute of Justice