Department of Justice Releases 2012 Report on Local Jail and State Prison Deaths by Matthew Clarke The Bureau of Justice Statistics of the U.S. Department of Justice released a December 2012 report entitled "Mortality in Local Jails and State Prisons, 2000-2010 - Statistical Tables." The report showed that 4,150 state …

Colorado: Parole Board’s Track Record Difficult to Assess by Colorado: Parole Board’s Track Record Difficult to Assess The killing of Tom Clements, executive director of the Colorado Department of Corrections (CDOC), made national news. Investigation ultimately connected the high-profile killing to a prisoner who was erroneously released from prison years …

Report Says Texas State Jails an Expensive Failure in Need of Reform by Report Says Texas State Jails an Expensive Failure in Need of Reform by Matt Clarke According to a November 2012 report published by the Texas Public Policy Foundation, a conservative think tank, the Texas state jail system …

Local Officials Decry Economic Disaster from Closure of North Carolina Prison by Local Officials Decry Economic Disaster from Closure of North Carolina Prison North Carolina officials plan to close the Robeson Correctional Center (RCC) because the state’s prison population has declined by 10 percent. Local officials are urging state legislators …

Report Analyzes New Jersey Jail Population by Report Analyzes New Jersey Jail Population In partnership with the Drug Policy Alliance, Luminosity has issued a report that analyzes New Jersey’s jail population. The study’s goal “is to use this profile to identify opportunities to responsibly reduce New Jersey’s jail population while …

Bipartisan Congressional Committee to Reduce Federal Criminal Code by Derek Gilna Bipartisan Congressional Committee to Reduce Federal Criminal Code by Derek Gilna There’s nothing like a good financial crisis in the federal government to focus politicians’ minds on saving money wherever they can, especially for their own pet projects. According …

Arkansas Jail Closed After Escapes, Might “Put A Hurt” on Bail Business by Arkansas Jail Closed After Escapes, Might “Put A Hurt” on Bail Business The Yell County Sheriff's Office (YCSO) closed its jail in Dardanelle, Arkansas in March 2013 after three prisoners escaped by strong-arming the lone guard working …

Report Says Compassionate Release Would Save Strapped BOP Money by Derek Gilna Report Says Compassionate Release Would Save Strapped BOP Money by Derek Gilna It apparently took the May 2013 issuance of an 85-page report by the non-partisan Inspector General Michael E. Horowitz, but that report and a well-publicized budget …

Guards Union Complaints Prompt Funds Transfer to Avoid Sequester Furloughs by Derek Gilna Guards Union Complaints Prompt Funds Transfer to Avoid Sequester Furloughs by Derek Gilna Tightening budgets due to the 2013 sequester cuts have forced U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder to transfer $150 million from other agencies to allow …

D.C. Area Federal Courts Reduce Staff because of Sequester Cuts by Derek Gilna D.C. Area Federal Courts Reduce Staff because of Sequester Cuts by Derek Gilna The sequester represents only a 3% across the board cut of federal spending, but it will have a noticeable impact on the operation of …

Violence Overruns Georgia’s Model Prison by Violence Overruns Georgia’s Model Prison Georgia’s FY 2011-12 prison of the year has an “unacceptable level of violence and security,” the Southern Center for Human Rights said in a January 31 letter to the Georgia Department of Corrections (GDOC). The letter comes on the …

North Carolina DOC Medical Overpayments Exceed 10% of Total Bills by North Carolina DOC Medical Overpayments Exceed 10% of Total Bills The North Carolina Department of Public Safety, Division of Corrections (DOC), is in need of the services of a professional recovery audit firm, an audit by the state’s Auditor …

GEO Group Reaps Higher Profit from New Mexico Prisons than Other States by GEO Group Reaps Higher Profit from New Mexico Prisons than Other States New Mexico pays significantly more to house prisoners in private prisons than other states, concluded a 2007 state legislative report. “Business decisions across two administrations …

Racial Disparities Diminishing, Especially Among Female Prisoners by Racial Disparities Diminishing, Especially Among Female Prisoners   As dispiriting are the racial inequities of mass-incarceration, recent trends are cause for a sliver of cautious optimism, according to a 2013 report from The Sentencing Project, a non-profit organization based in Washington, D.C. …

When Halfway Houses Pose Full-Time Problems by Derek Gilna When Halfway Houses Pose Full-Time Problems by Derek Gilna A recent interest among government officials in reducing prison populations as a way to cut costs, stemming from the 2008 Great Recession that resulted in significant budget deficits, has placed renewed emphasis …

“Ban the Box” Campaigns Seek to End Discrimination Against Formerly Incarcerated College Applicants by Victoria Law “Ban the Box” Campaigns Seek to End Discrimination Against Formerly Incarcerated College Applicants by Victoria Law "Selene” had been out of prison for one month when she applied to Dutchess Community College and Ulster …

The Globalization of Supermax Prisons, edited by Jeffrey Ian Ross (Rutgers University Press, 2013). 240 pages, $28.95 paperback by Gary Hunter The Globalization of Supermax Prisons, edited by Jeffrey Ian Ross (Rutgers University Press, 2013). 240 pages, $28.95 paperback Book review by Gary Hunter "Zero tolerance” is a phrase that …

Ohio DOC Director Wants Return to Stricter Law after 2012 Spike in Positive Drug Tests by Ohio DOC Director Wants Return to Stricter Law after 2012 Spike in Positive Drug Tests Drug testing in Ohio prisons in October 2012 revealed the highest level of prisoner drug use in more than …

America’s Prisons: A Road to Nowhere by Ben Notterman America’s Prisons: A Road to Nowhere by Ben Notterman Video of Henry McCollum’s release from a North Carolina prison in September 2014 shows the exonerated death row prisoner making his way through a crowd of excited onlookers and into his family’s …

Arrest-Related Deaths Program Assessment: Technical Report BJS 2015 Arrest-Related Deaths Program Assessment Technical Report Duren Banks Lance Couzens Caroline Blanton Devon Cribb RTI International NCJ 248543 March 2015 Contents Executive summary .....................................................................................................................1 1 Background ..............................................................................................................................3 2 Methodology ............................................................................................................................4 2.1 Probabilistic case-level linking ......................................................................................4 2.1.1 Calculation of similarity scores .........................................................................5 2.1.2 …