Artwork stating 'Education Destroys Barriers', 'We Demand Treatment', and 'I Need A Chance'

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  • Opioid crisis puts Ohio jails at the center of burden and opportunity

    As jails in Ohio struggle with the skyrocketing numbers of people addicted to opioids, they are increasingly becoming the state's primary detox centers. This article explores how several counties are addressing the issue by connecting inmates to jobs, training and housing to cut down on overdose deaths and reduce recidivism. Medicaid has also made it easier to get inmates health insurance coverage, which gives them access to treatment and medications upon release.

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  • Courting The Ones Who Need It

    Developed in 2016, the Eugene Community Court program offers individuals cited for nonviolent, minor crimes an alternative to prison. If a person agrees to participate, they are matched with a case manager who connects them to the resources they need, like substance abuse treatment or job training services. The city hopes to decrease the rate of recidivism by creating tailored programs for each individual and spark a societal shift that has long criminalized poverty.

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  • How a New York Police Official Targets Thoughts to Fight Crime

    A former prosecutor now works directly with offenders as a deputy police chief in a movement called Council of Thought And Action (COTA), often going directly to them in the community and bringing them together in support groups. The idea is that crime is a result of poor problem solving, and COTA is designed to restructure ways of thinking and behaving, using cognitive therapy tools to address past emotional baggage, and the power of social networks to provide a positive replacement to the destructive networks they had in the past.

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  • Mothers in Charge grads exchange prison uniforms for caps and gowns

    A program in Philadelphia works with formerly incarcerated women for an intensive 10-week period where they focus on life skills and changing thought patterns. Women get support and mentoring to examine how they wound up in prison, such as addressing past abuse that undermined their self-esteem. They go through a formal graduation program and learn ways to face challenges as they work to change their lives.

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  • After the Pain, a Chance to Meet and Forgive

    A program in Kansas facilitates meetings between the survivors of those killed and the people who brought this pain into their world. This article delves into just one of these stories to explore how a couple reconciles with the man who got drunk, stole a truck and killed their son in a horrific crash. It looks at the impact on the perpetrator as well and how this meeting helped him understand the full scope of what he did so he could get sober and start healing.

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  • Oregon Detective Pioneers New Sexual Assault Reporting Program

    In Ashland, Oregon, the police department has launched a program that better serves sexual assault survivors by putting them at the center. The program, called You Have Options, considers the challenges that survivors face and works to help them through the reporting process, including letting them report anonymously. In its first year, You Have Options saw a 106% increase in sexual assault reporting and departments across the United States are now seeking to implement it.

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  • Jackson Teens Need Mentors, Opportunity

    The staff of the Jackson Free Press used a Solutions Journalism Network grant to explore juvenile justice issues and solutions taking place around the country. This piece offers an overview by the publisher of what they found, including a youth media program in Utah and a group in Seattle that offers alternatives for keeping young people out of the criminal justice system when they start to get in trouble. It puts it in the context of the specific challenges facing young people in Jackson and why city and state leaders should pay attention to how other communities are meeting these challenges.

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  • A New Way of Fighting Crime—and Helping Victims—on the Violent Streets of Los Angeles

    Four community groups in the Los Angeles area work to address the root causes of what draws young people into gangs with a mix of approaches to help people leave the gang life, including education and job services, counseling, addiction services, and tattoo removal. Some also focus on helping victims since so many gang members start out life as victims themselves and this feeds into a cycle of violence. All of them focus on creating community and belonging, which is why so many young people join gangs in the first place.

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  • The ‘win-win-win' Tompkins could use to help jailed veterans

    Over 220 Veterans Treatment Courts have been created across the United States, each of which helps provide services like rehabilitation and support groups instead of jail time to veterans. Courts in Ithaca, New York are thinking about implementing such programs and are looking to places like Buffalo, which has seen a decreased recidivism rate to just five percent.

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  • How Portland Lives With, Not Against, Its Rats

    Whether or not rats have free access to garbage matters to a city because the more rats eat, the more babies they make. Portland has continued to enforce old laws that require trash be kept in sturdy rat-resistant containers, keeping their rat population much smaller than other cities.

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