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Some youth avoid detention and rehabilitate at Central Oregon ranch

Dave Miller Allison Frost

July 09, 2021 |

Oregon Public Broadcasting (OPB) |

Radio Talk Show |

Over 15 Minutes

Response Location: United States, Bend, Oregon

Youth in Oregon who get court-ordered rehabilitation as an alternative to youth detention might end up at the J Bar J Ranch, which despite its name is less a working ranch than a boarding school with individual counseling aimed at helping troubled young people change themselves. Success takes many forms – high school diplomas, reconnecting with family, setting and meeting personal goals – but first the youth must earn a place at the ranch, which can only take 28 at a time.

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The ‘prison' with no fence: Go inside a Charlotte women's center changing lives for good

Devna Bose

July 08, 2021 |

The Charlotte Observer |

Multi-Media |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Charlotte, North Carolina

Charlotte's Center for Women uses a rehabilitative approach to incarceration, letting up to 30 women at a time live in a group home that provides both therapy and connections to employment. Women with one to three years left on their sentences can apply for a spot in the residential work-release program. They and their families – most are mothers – get the counseling they need to adjust to a better life once the residents get released. The women say the small freedoms they are granted in the home, plus the respect and help they get, do for them what prison never could in changing lives.

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Criminal justice changes in Virginia prompt debate over how prosecutors are funded by the state

Antonio Olivo

July 06, 2021 |

The Washington Post |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Fairfax, Virginia

Fairfax County, Virginia, boasts the state's most ambitious program to divert cases from criminal prosecution to treatment courts, including for drug offenses and involving veterans. But all of the work by prosecutors to deliver a more therapeutic form of justice ends up penalizing the county under the state's formula for funding of prosecutor offices, which rewards felony convictions. Because the true workload isn't reflected in the funding, Fairfax has faced staffing shortage, leading to conflicts with the police over inaction on certain cases. The state has begun a lengthy study of the issue.

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How Indigenous-led organizations are rebuilding connection to language and culture

Jolene Rudisuela

July 06, 2021 |

Capital Daily |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Canada, Nanaimo, British Columbia

The Nisaika Kum’tuks and Tsawalk learning centers provide alternative schooling options for Indigenous students to learn more about their culture and languages. The centers teach a total of 100 students from 23 different nations, many of whom come from single-family homes that are experiencing economic hardship or have been part of the foster care system. While the schools have recently shut down to be consolidated with the local school system, efforts are underway to create a new learning center that continues the mission of combining traditional knowledge and culture with academia.

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Police response to mentally ill people is under scrutiny. Denver may offer way forward.

Vicky Collins

July 04, 2021 |

NBC News |

Broadcast TV News |

3-5 Minutes

Response Location: United States, Denver

As the nation’s largest city to embrace an alternative approach to responding to 911 calls in non-violent personal crises, Denver finished the first year of its pilot program having never needed police backup when its medics and social workers handled problems on the streets. About a third of calls to STAR (Support Team Assisted Response) came from police who saw STAR as a better responder to certain calls. In about 40% of calls, people in mental health or substance use crises received the services they needed without involving arrests or conflicts with police.

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Two KCK schools shifting focus from punishment to make schools safer, reduce suspensions

Maria Benevento

July 02, 2021 |

The Kansas City Beacon |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Kansas City, Kansas

Restorative discipline in classrooms is allowing students to focus on building relationships and repairing harm instead of suffering punishments. The practice prioritizes communication in an effort to emphasize community as well as reduce suspensions. The technique has had proven success in other schools, resulting in dramatic decreases in safety offenses.

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Rethinking policing: How Tempe de-escalation class changes officer behavior

Melissa Blasius

July 02, 2021 |

KNXV-TV |

Broadcast TV News |

3-5 Minutes

Response Location: United States, Tempe, Arizona

A controversial police shooting and other fraught encounters between Tempe police and residents prompted police to devise their own retraining regimen focused on de-escalation. The department observed other cities' programs and learned from its own officers who are known for defusing potentially volatile situations. After training some officers with the new curriculum, the department invited researchers to compare body-cam footage of trained and untrained officers. Though the findings did not show fewer shootings or uses of force, they did show a less aggressive, more calming approach.

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Back to Life

Tanya Hendel

June 30, 2021 |

Transitions Online |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Belarus, Gomel

People Plus has begun to fill a vacuum left by the Belarus prison system's lack of reentry services aimed at giving people a better chance to succeed after prison. The NGO provides its "resocialization" counseling for incarcerated people in the six months before their release. In its first six months, the program counseled more than 1,000 people, helping prepare them to find housing and jobs and avoid substance abuse, which in many cases proved successful. Its peer counselors stay in contact with clients after prison through meetings and online forums.

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The career where it helps to have a criminal past

Jo Mathys

June 29, 2021 |

BBC |

Podcast |

Over 15 Minutes

Response Location: United States, Washington, District of Columbia

All people between the ages of 14 and 21 in Washington, D.C., who are placed on probation for criminal convictions get assigned a probation officer, social worker, and a "credible messenger" – a mentor, usually with his or her own criminal past, who is paid by the city Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services to help ensure a successful probationary period. The cost is far lower than youth detention and is associated with a much lower rate of re-offending. The work is so intense that the highly trained messengers often need their own counseling to cope with the stress of turning lives around.

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Post-Derek Chauvin, Police Are Training to Intervene When They Witness Misconduct

Zusha Elinson Denise Blostein Rob Alcaraz

June 28, 2021 |

Wall Street Journal |

Multi-Media |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Denver, Colorado

After videos showed two Minneapolis police officers did nothing to stop Derek Chauvin from killing George Floyd, more than 130 police departments raced to sign up to train their officers on how to intervene to prevent fellow officers from using excessive force or committing other misconduct. A course called Active Bystandership for Law Enforcement (ABLE) trains officers who then take the training to the officers in their departments. The training seeks to overcome the insular culture of policing, teaching an escalating series of tactics to stop misconduct on the spot.

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