Relevant Facebook Posts on this topic.
Breaking News: State of Maryland Reinvests Nearly $3 Million from Justice Reinvestment Act Funds
“We are pleased to have the opportunity to reinvest money saved through Justice Reinvestment Act reforms,” said Glenn Fueston, Executive Director of the Governor’s Office of Crime Prevention, Youth, and Victim Services. “These awards will support programs that aim to reduce recidivism among returning citizens, while also addressing gaps in services. The Performance Incentive Grant Fund is another positive step toward making our communities safer.”
See the full News release here.
Fact Sheet: Covid-19 and Maryland Courts
An informative FAQ was received from the University of Maryland, Francis King Carey School of Law.
- “Due to the COVID-19 pandemic there are a number of new rules governing how the criminal justice system works. The following is a summary of how your criminal case might be affected by the new rules but should not be considered as formal legal advice. Please keep in mind that this information is neither exhaustive nor complete, as rules are constantly changing and updating as more information becomes available.”
To view this informative FAQ about the Courts and Covid-19 click here.
Don’t let Maryland return to a failed crime strategy
In its closing weeks, the Maryland legislature tried to rush through a truly harmful crime bill. Known as the Hogan-Zirkin crime package, it included regressive policies that represent a failed approach to public safety by relying on long sentences. That may sound appealing, but long sentences don’t make communities safer. Read the full article here.
Fact Sheet: Drivers of Maryland’s Prison System
On July 29, senior staff of the Pew Charitable Trusts gave their first presentation focusing on data from Maryland’s prison system to the Justice Reinvestment Coordinating Council, created in the 2015 legislative session. The Council is charged with developing “a statewide framework of sentencing and corrections policies to further reduce the State’s incarcerated population, reduce spending on corrections, and reinvest in strategies to increase public safety and reduce recidivism.”
Lifer’s Conference. The Maryland Lifer’s Conference is a collaboration of Lifer’s organizations in various institutions within the Maryland prison system dedicated to positive change within ourselves, and the Judicial and prison systems.
Maryland justice statistics. The Justice Policy Institute named September 2014 “Maryland Month” and published a series of factsheets highlighting various aspects of the Maryland justice system that put the hard numbers on Maryland’s overuse of incarceration in context.
Women in prison. The Maryland Commission for Women produced this status report on the factors leading to women’s incarceration and ways to break the cycle of incarceration.
Reducing incarceration. In 2012, the Maryland Taskforce on Prisoner Reentry issued a report that recommended “a significant restructuring of the state’s criminal justice and correctional systems both to reduce the number of individuals incarcerated and to improve reentry programming and transitional services provided for those who remain.”
Reducing sentences. This 2013 study of recidivism by the Pew Charitable Trust found that Maryland could save $30 million without harming public safety by reducing prison sentences for nonviolent offenders.
Can we “downsize” our prisons? A thoughtful Baltimore Sun editorial suggests we can.
A look at the data. The National Institute of Corrections publishes basic data on state correctional systems, allowing cross-state comparison.
“Cutting Correctly in Maryland. ” A study by the Justice Policy Institute shows how many state policymakers are rethinking the costly sentencing and parole policies that have sent so many nonviolent offenders to prison and kept them there so long.
