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Enlisting Mental Health Workers, Not Cops, In Mobile Crisis Response

Rob Waters

June 01, 2021 |

Health Affairs |

Text |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Eugene, Oregon

The long-running CAHOOTS program, which replaces police with medics and social workers to respond to non-violent, non-criminal mental health crises, suicide threats, and problems stemming from homelessness, serves as a model for similar programs in the nationwide push to reimagine policing. CAHOOTS teams de-escalate crises at first simply because they are not armed police. They also take the time and have the training to calm situations and get people the help they need. Programs in Phoenix and Denver demonstrate how the idea plays out in larger cities.

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APD touts progress in preventing gun crime through intervention program

Chris McKee

May 28, 2021 |

KRQE-TV |

Broadcast TV News |

Under 3 Minutes

Response Location: United States, Albuquerque, New Mexico

When young people with criminal records get shot in Albuquerque, they may get visited by the police department's Violence Intervention Program: cops and counselors urging the victims to resist the impulse to retaliate. Shooting victims are offered social and health services meant to stabilize their lives. In its first year, the team contacted 149 people, nearly all of whom stayed out of criminal trouble. None got caught with a gun and only one got shot again.

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Utah Co. jail has largest jail industries program nationwide, providing jobs and hope for inmates

Sydney Glenn

May 28, 2021 |

KSTU-TV |

Broadcast TV News |

Under 3 Minutes

Response Location: United States, Spanish Fork, Utah

Nearly 10,000 people incarcerated in the Utah County Jail have found paid work in the community during their jail terms thanks to the sheriff's Jail Industries program. While the incarcerated people get to keep just 20% of their wages, and only people with low-level offenses may participate, about 70% who go through the program get offered permanent jobs when they're released, thanks to employers' satisfaction with the workers. Having a decent job is a critical factor in preventing future criminal offenses. Jail Industries graduates have shown lower than average recidivism rates.

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People in Solitary Confinement and Volunteers Team Up to Garden, Imagine a World Without Prisons

Roshan Abraham

May 27, 2021 |

Next City |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, New Orleans, Louisiana

The Solitary Gardens project started in New Orleans and has been copied in multiple other places as a combination art exhibit and therapeutic link between incarcerated people and the outside world. People on both sides of the prison walls collaborate in pairs to design a garden that grows flowers and herbs chosen by the incarcerated person. The gardens match the tiny dimensions of a solitary-confinement cell. The healing herbs are used to help others, and the exercise overall gives incarcerated people a sense of connection to the earth, part of the project's prison-abolition message.

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This running program gives a mental health boost to incarcerated women

Chaundra Furin-Campbell

May 27, 2021 |

The Philadelphia Citizen |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Wilsonville, Oregon

More than 1,000 women incarcerated at Oregon's Coffee Creek Correctional Facility have participated since 2015 in Reason to Run, a program promoting better physical and mental health through running. Participants receive eight weeks of training and then are eligible to compete in races, albeit within the prison confines. After their release, the encouragement continues with "run care packages" of sneakers and sports bras. Surveys show the women felt happier, healthier, and part of a positive group experience.

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Reforms are emptying Louisiana's prisons. This group makes sure no one goes back.

Katy Reckdahl

May 26, 2021 |

The Washington Post |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, New Orleans, Louisiana

First 72+ is a New Orleans reentry agency founded by formerly incarcerated people to help others as they exit prison. That help focuses on everyday needs for transportation, housing, and emotional support. As in many states, a large share of formerly incarcerated people get sent back to prison, often for lack of support on the outside. The name First 72+ refers to research showing how the first 72 hours after prison can determine one's fate. In six years, none of the 176 people, mostly men, served by the agency has returned to prison, a record that prompted the state to send more clients to the agency.

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How well is Cure Violence working in St. Louis?

Casey Nolen

May 26, 2021 |

KSDK-TV |

Broadcast TV News |

Under 3 Minutes

Response Location: United States, St. Louis, Missouri

While homicides in St. Louis in the first part of 2021 increased over already-high numbers in recent years, three neighborhoods served by a new Cure Violence program showed significant decreases in homicides, assaults, and robberies. Cure Violence, a national program, puts "violence interrupters" on the streets to intervene before arguments turn deadly and to provide people with services they need. In one neighborhood, Dutchtown, interrupters say they prevented 87 incidents in less than seven months. The city now is trying to find the money to expand the program to more areas of the city.

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SEPTA is testing a new way to help people struggling with addiction on the system

Darryl C. Murphy

May 26, 2021 |

WHYY |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

A pilot program in Philadelphia’s transit system is providing social services for people struggling with addiction. Loitering violations in and around SEPTA stations are on the rise in the wake of the pandemic, spurring the city to reach out to those experiencing homelessness and addiction instead of solely policing the vulnerable populations. The project will be implemented in several other stations around the city as well.

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Early Cure Violence statistics promising, city health official says

Mark Schlinkmann

May 26, 2021 |

St. Louis Post-Dispatch |

Text |

Under 800 Words

Response Location: United States, St. Louis, Missouri

In the parts of two neighborhoods where the violence-intervention program Cure Violence has been active since June 2020, and a third where it has been operating since January, more than 300 potentially violent incidents were averted through the work of Cure Violence's "violence interrupters." The interrupters mediate disputes and then help people get the social services they might need to stabilize their lives. Homicides, assaults, and robberies are down in those neighborhoods while up citywide so far in 2021. The city agreed to spend $7 million to launch the program, which some hope to expand.

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More States Consider Automatic Criminal Record Expungement

Kristian Hernández

May 25, 2021 |

Stateline |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States

At least 11 states have enacted laws that automatically seal certain criminal records, to help people find jobs and housing without long-ago mistakes posing unfair obstacles. Pennsylvania's 2019 law has helped an estimated 1 million people. Debates and criticisms focus on safety concerns; whether to grant law enforcement officials access to sealed records; and the limits of such protections based on types of crimes and how long ago they were committed. When expungement isn't automatic, the cost and complexity of applying for help can be so daunting that few manage to win a second chance.

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