Five Things This Week: San Quentin Gets a Lofty Makeover, Gentrification’s Unique Impact on Returning Citizens & More
“...there were a lot of business opportunities I've missed out on because that money was just sitting in a government account.”
Jerry Johnson's story is all too familiar to justice reform advocates who work on civil asset forfeiture reforms. Despite progress on forfeiture reforms around the country, owners of small and medium-sized trucking companies are frequently caught up in lucrative airport stings. For Johnson and his family, the $39,000 seized from him at the Phoenix Airport during a trip to buy a semi-truck has represented missed opportunities and generational setbacks. Thankfully, his story received a somewhat happy ending this week after courts ordered his money be returned. Recovering the money with the help of the Institute for Justice is a relief, but can't bring back lost years on the road or in business.
“Yeah, we lock a lot people up in the state, but we release them, too.”
Just days after its Monday introduction, the Arkansas legislature advanced a highly anticipated 132-page “truth-in-sentencing” bill aimed at drastically increasing the portion of sentences that must be served behind prison walls. The “tough-on-crime” effort has been a priority of newly-elected Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders, and has broad support among the state's Republican lawmakers, despite concerns over the negative fiscal, public safety, and human impact the bill will have.
“...the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, has not always been a brilliant steward of its domain.”
California Governor Gavin Newsom campaigned on criminal justice reform and has signed some important legislation since his election, but there have been tremendous failures too, including when corrections officers transferred hundreds of prisoners to San Quentin without adequate screening for COVID-19, resulting in at least 29 deaths, which one judge called, "morally indefensible and constitutionally untenable." Now, the Democrat is presented with another opportunity: reimagining the state's infamous San Quentin prison in the image of far more progressive -- and homogenous -- systems like those in Norway. Can he navigate the slim margins of support and create a truly rehabilitative environment on U.S. soil?
“We just don't have the ability to move folks in our care to facilities where we do have some bed vacancies, because we don't have the staff to take care of them.”
The Green Bay Correctional Institution has been the subject of criticism and concern in Wisconsin for years. This week, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports that lawmakers "grilled" Wisconsin DOC Secretary Kevin Carr about the potential for structural failures at the facility due to its age, outdated design, and an on-going reluctance to invest in repairs or move inmates to other facilities that may have lower upkeep costs.
“I can’t stop thinking about what it means that all these achievements are my only hope to afford a place at the market rate. And what it means that Mr. Brooks, and most of the others leaving prison, only hope to avoid a shelter.”
Finding housing is tough for any returning citizen. Often locked out of educational and job opportunities, even low market rents are difficult to afford. But as neighborhoods in places like New York City continue to gentrify and rents continue to soar, the problem is amplified for those who have served longer sentences. For these inmates, exiting the justice system means returning to communities they barely recognize, and have little hope of being able to afford to live in.
As Deputy Director, Lauren focuses on the Justice Action Network’s expanding state work.