Tag Archives: Criminal Justice Reform

Jean Trounstine :
A moment of restorative justice

While the U.S.criminal justice system offers revenge as its principal method of restitution, families may find better solutions for achieving remorse and true rehabilitation. By Jean Trounstine | The Rag Blog | September 9, 2014 It never happens. That’s what … Continue reading

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METRO | Alice Embree : Grassroots Leadership takes on the prison profiteers

The group helped end immigrant family detention at T. Don Hutto private prison and is challenging Travis County Sheriff Hamilton’s deportation policies. By Alice Embree | The Rag Blog | June 22, 2014 AUSTIN — Grassroots Leadership says that Texas … Continue reading

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Diana Claitor : Why We Need To Protect Texas Inmates

Texas Jail Project protests at Taylor County Jail in 2008. Image from Abilene Reporter-News. Texas Jail Project director Diana Claitor will be Thorne Dreyer‘s guest on Rag Radio on KOOP 91.7 FM in Austin, Tuesday, October 19, 2-3 p.m. (CST). … Continue reading

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Lily Keber : Putting Families in Jail in America

Putting children in jail:T. Don Hutto and family detention in America As hope for change in Obama immigration policy dwindles, activists speculate on the fate of family detention. By Lily Keber / The Rag Blog / November 20, 2009 See … Continue reading

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David Richards : The Judge Who Brought Justice to Texas

Justice William Wayne Justice. Photo by Michael O’Brien / School of Law / UT Austin William Wayne Justice, Judge Who Remade Texas, Dies at 89 William Wayne Justice, a federal district judge who ruled on ground-breaking class-action suits that compelled … Continue reading

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Beyond Hutto : Reforming Immigrant Detention

Demonstrator at T. Don Hutto detention facility on World Refugee Day, June 20, 2009. Photo by Melissa Del Bosque / The Texas Observer.Beyond Hutto:Activists reflect on the continuing struggle against immigrant detention centers. By DC Tedrow / The Rag Blog … Continue reading

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Austin : 20 Men Exonerated by DNA call for Death Penalty Moratorium

Former Florida death row inmate Juan Melendez, left, greets former Texas death row inmate Clarence Brandley at a news conference Friday, Oct. 31, in Austin. Photo by Rudolfo gonzalez / Austin American-Statesman.‘The exonerated men, members of Witness to Innocence, want … Continue reading

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Grits for Breakfast :
Texas Appeals Court Takes New Look at Use of Post-Conviction DNA Evidence

‘We know the criminal justice system needs reform,’ By Grits for Breakfast | The Rag Blog | August 7, 2008 There was a time not so long ago when the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals didn’t think too highly of … Continue reading

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Grits for Breakfast :
Texas Jail Crisis : Pretrial Detention up nearly 50%

Dumping Debra and Donna: Counties should reduce pretrial incarceration if they can’t afford health costs By Grits for Breakfast | The Rag Blog | August 4, 2008 Over the last decade or so, even as crime has declined, most Texas … Continue reading

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Death Row and ‘The Rat Trap’

Levon Jones was freed from North Carolina’s death row in May after a paid informant recanted her testimony.Death row exonerations expose failings of the ‘snitch system’By Christopher Moraff Since 1973, 129 innocent people were released from death row — more … Continue reading

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Decriminalising Pot: Can They Do It This Time?

Ease Pot Restrictions, Lawmakers UrgeJuly 30, 2008 The U.S. should stop arresting responsible marijuana users, Rep. Barney Frank said Wednesday, announcing a proposal to end federal penalties for Americans carrying fewer than 100 grams, almost a quarter-pound, of the substance. … Continue reading

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Slammed: Welcome to the Age of Incarceration

The US holds 1 in 4of the world’s prisoners. What happens when you lock up 1 in every 100 American adults?By Jennifer Gonnerman The number first appeared in headlines earlier this year: Nearly one in four of all prisoners worldwide … Continue reading

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