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Domestic Violence court offers alternatives, hope for future

Elizabeth M. Miller

January 22, 2018 |

New Mexico In Depth |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Albuquerque, New Mexico

In Albuquerque, New Mexico, a domestic violence court offers funnels perpetrators into programs that offer counseling and other services to address the root causes of their behavior. Its two tracks focus on first-time offenders to short-circuit any escalation into chronic abuse, as well as those with multiple domestic violence charges. Judges work closely with participants to encourage them and call them out when they aren't meeting their obligations, and recidivism rates among those who complete the programs are far lower than those who do not.

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Redemption for Offenders and Victims

Lara Bazelon

January 17, 2018 |

The American Prospect |

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Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Boston, Massachusetts

In Boston federal courts, select criminal defendants can participate in a restorative justice program called RISE (Repair, Invest, Succeed, Emerge) that delays sentencing while defendants engage in dialogue with crime victims, family, and others. The restorative dialogues are designed for a type of accountability unlike a prison sentence. Eligible defendants must admit their crime, have a history of addiction or other deprivation, and get jobs or attend school. By addressing the harms they have inflicted and the obligations they have to make things right, defendants can earn a more lenient sentence.

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Bernalillo County partners with South Valley community programs to end racial and ethnic disparities in juvenile justice

Elizabeth M. Miller

December 26, 2017 |

New Mexico In Depth |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Albuquerque, New Mexico

A program in Albuquerque, New Mexico that successfully diverted young offenders from the criminal justice system still grappled with kids running away while under house arrest. This defeats the purpose of diversion since they can end up in jail, so county officials found another option for kids who might have chaotic home lives. They partnered with a community organization where kids can go if they need a safe space without violating their probation orders and learn skills like gardening and screen printing.

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Lessons from Seattle: How this alternative to jail may be a solution for Utah

Erica Evans

December 20, 2017 |

Deseret News |

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Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Seattle, Washington

A program piloted in Seattle and now replicated in several cities nationwide aims to redirect low-level drug offenders into a case management system that can help them change their lives by connecting them with social services and advocating for their wellbeing. The program is called Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion, or LEAD, and police officers can direct people into it if they are suspected of having committed a drug crime.

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Portugal's radical drugs policy is working. Why hasn't the world copied it?

Susana Ferreira

December 05, 2017 |

The Guardian |

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Over 3000 Words

Response Location: Portugal, Olhão

After the fall of an oppressive and isolating regime, Portugal found itself utterly unprepared to deal with the rapid distribution of narcotics in the 1980s, creating a crisis that left 1 in every 10 people struggling with addiction. The country took a radical approach to rectifying opioid use through a huge cultural shift in the way it viewed and treated addicts - prioritizing support services and pioneering programs like needle-exchange and substitution therapy, and eventually decriminalizing hard drugs so that users could more easily get help, and drug rates have since plummeted.

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Native American peacemaking courts offer a model for reform

Rebecca Clarren

November 30, 2017 |

InvestigateWest |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Yurok Reservation, United States, Klamath, California

A growing number of tribal judges nationwide - including Judge Abby Abinanti of the Yurok Tribal Court - are using a framework of traditional culture and an approach known as "restorative justice" to address both the need for rehabilitation of offenders and resolution for people often failed by the dominant criminal justice system.

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Mental health court could lower recidivism, cut costs

Carlos Andres López

November 27, 2017 |

NMPolitics.net |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Las Cruces, New Mexico

For offenders with a co-occurring mental health disorder, the regular prison system is not viewed as an optimal environment. A mental health court would help lower recidivism and increase the offender's quality of life by treating their mental health issues in order to focus on the underlying issue contributing to the criminal acts.

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When Communities Say No One Should Stay in Jail Just Because They're Poor

Amy Roe

November 27, 2017 |

Yes! Magazine |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Atlanta, Georgia

Across the United States, organizations like Southerners on New ground and the Bronx Freedom Fund are posting bail for individuals facing low-level offenses who cannot afford it on their own. Such initiatives have gained in popularity because of the Black Mamas Bail-Out, a coordinated effort during May of each year. In posting their bail, these organizations are working to equitably help people of color, who are disproportionately affected by the cash bail system.

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‘We can't just keep doing what we've been doing': King County tries risky alternative to youth jail

Claudia Rowe

October 23, 2017 |

The Seattle Times |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Seattle, Washington

As Seattle’s Central District continues plans to expand their juvenile detention center, one prosecutor is looking for ways to keep kids out of it. "Our system has proven woefully inadequate, so we can’t just keep doing what we’ve been doing," explains Jimmy Hung, the prosecutor behind this hope. Hung, in partnership with the chief deputy prosecutor, faith workers, police officers and the director of King County’s juvenile detention center are now piloting peace circles with incoming detained juveniles with a goal of seeing a behavior and lifestyle switch.

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Drug court – giving families a chance to break the cycle of opioid use

Fred R Conrad

October 23, 2017 |

The Guardian |

Photojournalism |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Abingdon, Virginia

In Washington County, Virginia, a drug court modeled after the federal drug court model is offering opioid addicts a chance to follow a strict program intended to help keep them sober as an alternative to incarceration. Participants are required to maintain full-time employment, subjected to random drug tests, attend mandatory therapy groups, and abide by a curfew. The program is helping addicts maintain sobriety throughout the duration of their enrollment in drug court instead of sending them to prison where they are less likely to have access to these types of addiction services.

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