Child-Friendly Prison Visits Help Moms In Washington Stay Connected, Reduce Trauma Of Separation
States are experimenting with programs that allow low-risk, incarcerated mothers to spend quality time with their children. Women are the fastest-growing prison population and states have varying policies on how often they can see their children. Prison news comes out of Washington, New York, Oklahoma, Missouri and Massachusetts.
The New York Times:
Getting Past The Barriers: When A Mother Is In Prison
Currently, over 200,000 women are imprisoned in the United States, the majority for nonviolent drug or property offenses, which have recently skyrocketed in connection with the opioid crisis. The number of children in foster care or living with relatives has soared as well. According to the Vera Institute of Justice, a nonprofit research organization, women are the country’s fastest-growing prison population, and 80 percent of them are mothers. The overwhelming majority were the primary caregivers of their children. (Valencia, 12/6)
St. Louis Public Radio:
Appeals Court Upholds Class Action Status For Thousands Of Missouri Inmates With Hepatitis
The American Civil Liberties Union and the MacArthur Justice Center sued the state on behalf of three inmates with the virus in 2016. The plaintiffs allege that the state didn’t treat their condition properly or quickly enough and only gave treatment to the people with the most serious symptoms. (Fentem, 12/6)
NPR:
Programs Help Incarcerated Moms Bond With Their Babies In Prison
Sonya Alley is the Correctional Unit Supervisor overseeing the Residential Parenting Program at WCCW. She says the program gives women a tangible way to turn their lives around. "It gets them out of their addictive past and co-dependency on drugs, or alcohol or relationships," she says. "It seems oxymoronic but there's some clarity when forced to do a prison sentence and forced to be a parent. It starts to shift the way the women think about themselves, their environments and wanting the best for themselves and their child." (Corley, 12/6)
WBUR:
Former Speaker DiMasi Reemerges As Advocate For Prisoners
Two years after his battle with cancer resulted in a shortened prison term, former House Speaker Salvatore DiMasi is stepping back into the public eye, offering harsh criticism of the federal Bureau of Prisons and indicating a desire to be an advocate for the better treatment of prisoners. The former North End politician said Wednesday that the cancer that led to his "compassionate release" from federal prison was in remission, and he called the Federal Bureau of Prisons a "rogue, rogue agency." (Murphy, 12/6)
