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🔈Have you or someone you know been a resident at D.C. Jail in the past year? CCE is seeking people willing to participate in an interview on conditions in the DC Jail, including the Central Detention Facility (CDF) and Correctional Treatment Facility (CTF). For directly impacted people, CCE will provide a small gift to show our appreciation for sharing your time and information about your experience. If you are interested in being interviewed, please contact Magdalena Tsiongas (443-296-2435 or [email protected]). 📑More information: CCE is writing a detailed report about the conditions in the DC Jail. The report could include recommendations for policy and/or programmatic changes, and will help inform plans for a new jail facility. We seek to speak confidentially🔒 with people who were previously incarcerated in CDF or CTF anytime during July 1, 2023- June 30, 2024. We also seek to interview people who have firsthand experience with the jail through providing services to people who are incarcerated there now or in the past year, and family members of currently incarcerated people. Interviews will take place during the months of July and August 2024, on Zoom, on the phone, or in person. No personally identifying information from interviewees will be included in the report.    🫴Please share this post to spread the word!

One of the biggest factors when it comes to #Improving the lives of inmates and helping them rehabilitate faster and better is receiving #Support from their loved ones. ET Group is helping enable moments of #Connection for inmates and their families by providing #VideoConferencing solutions to correctional institutions. These video visitation solutions not only benefit prisoners, but also the facilities they reside in, as they increase levels of #Safety in the environment and allow staff to spend their time more #Productively. Learn more about Video Visitation: How Audio Visual Technology Improves the Lives of Prisoners & Their Families in our latest blog: https://hubs.li/Q02JnxYs0 And contact us to discover more about our #Justice Solutions. #JusticeSolutions #VideoVisitation #Corrections

Here is another research article authored by our public safety team, published in Corrections: "Correctional Officer Reflections on How to Address Incarcerated People’s Unmet Needs in Canadian Prisons". Abstract: Although incarcerated people best understand their needs and rehabilitative processes, the current study explores how correctional officers (COs) understand the needs of people in their custody and care to support their reentry and incarceration experience. Given COs are the lifeline of incarcerated people, penal scholarship should value their input as an essential resource for recognizing what incarcerated people need to desist and prepare for reintegration when imprisoned. Drawing on qualitative interviews with 28 COs employed in Atlantic Canada, we contextualize and report on what COs believe are the (often unmet) needs of incarcerated people. More specifically, intending to learn what COs desired in the design of a new replacement prison in a Canadian Atlantic province, we found COs emphasized meeting prison residents’ unmet needs – often over their own – with results centralizing incarcerated people’s physical and mental health needs, availability of meaningful rehabilitative, vocational, and cultural-specific programming, and access to recreation and fresh air. We discuss the actualization of each programmatic construct, recognizing prison society is unique and programming and practices must respond to the positionality of incarcerated people and their lived experiences rather than normative ideals about social living. https://lnkd.in/ejNpRp5e #corrections #prisons #prisonreform #criminology

Our prisons can focus on rehabilitation, not just punishment! While losing freedom is a given, prisons should equip inmates with tools to reintegrate into society. Misconceptions about prison goals can create a hostile environment & worsen mental health, leading to higher recidivism rates. Let's invest in staff training & prioritize #PrisonReform for a safer future! #Rehabilitation #SocialJustice https://lnkd.in/eZ_fYMaK).

As criminologists, we have known this for a while. Perhaps now that public health researchers are also finding the same thing, people will listen. When we think about correctional reform, we must consider correctional personnel. How can we expect incarcerated individuals to rehabilitate and reintegrate successfully if we do not have enough staff AND enough WELL staff to rehabilitate them adequately? Sure we can pass all of the reforms in the world to help incarcerated people, but with stressed out and traumatized staff—on top of having too few staff—reforms will not reach their full potential. Interventions are needed to provide correctional personnel the support that they desperately need. #staffingcrisis #COwellbeing #prisonreform

🔍 At the core of JUSTICE TRENDS 12th edition is the modernisation of criminal justice systems. The issue’s background article makes it clear: effective transformation in prisons and probation services hinges on leadership that embraces change. 🌱 Correctional leaders must be proactive in driving transformation, from policy reforms to reimagining prison environments. 💭 💡 👥 But that's not all—read this edition’s Expert Panel to find out what modernisation can mean across different bodies involved in the criminal justice system, with insights from leaders in international organisations, human rights, and beyond. Their diverse perspectives offer a comprehensive look at how we can reshape justice systems for the future. 📖 Read it now—don’t miss this powerful combo of insightful pieces. https://loom.ly/5L5fO5I

Correctional Counselor Testimony About The CBT & Reentry Skills Workbook: “As a counselor using the CBT workbook with the inmates at PTDC, I can honestly say that it has positively affected the inmates. It helps people to identify their negative thoughts and take the necessary steps to replace them with positive thoughts. The exercises in the workbook help people understand or identify situations that can put them in trouble and what they need to do to stay out of trouble. Moreover, it empowers them to build a healthy and more constructive lifestyle. Importantly, this book gives them a perspective on what their lives can be like when they are out of jail by teaching them how to set feasible goals and the steps to take to achieve these goals. Lastly, this book builds peoples' confidence and makes them believe in themselves and have a bright future. Frankly, I will recommend this book to any focus group in any detention facility for its positive impact on the inmates. It is easy to teach due to the simplicity and clarity of the worksheets and exercises that can be used in reentry group sessions or programs” For a demo or more information about the workbook please contact us.

"and" is the most important word in this research review: Integrated Safety and Health Promotion among Correctional Workers and People Incarcerated: A Scoping Review - https://lnkd.in/dpvMYUsE

A criminal legal system that punishes people convicted of crimes overlooks an essential fact: hundreds of thousands of people leave incarceration and return to their communities each year. Punishing people in jail and prison has not worked. Do you know what’s been more effective? Changing correctional culture and investing in solutions that prioritize aid, growth, and health. Improving prison safety increases public safety and is how we transform the criminal legal system. https://ow.ly/EUMG50Q7COE

I recently read "Just Mercy" by Bryan Stevenson, and feel compelled to encourage everyone to read this book. Bryan Stevenson is a highly regarded public interest lawyer that has committed his life to helping the underprivileged and innocent in prison. His book is a profound exploration into the flaws and injustices prevalent within the American criminal justice system, many of which reveal a long history of institutional racism. One staggering statistic shared in his book is that one in nine people executed on death row are innocent. This harsh reality reveals serious errors and biases ingrained within our legal system, emphasizing the urgent need for change. Another sobering fact presented in "Just Mercy" is the prevalence of mental illness among those who have been incarcerated by our judiciary. Stevenson states that “over 50% of prison and jail inmates in the United States have a diagnosed mental illness”, with a disproportionate number of mentally ill individuals ending up in correctional facilities rather than receiving proper treatment. My biggest takeaway from this book, however, transcends statistics and numbers. It is the recognition that despite our differences, we are all flawed and vulnerable, each carrying burdens and struggles. That flawed and broken state that we all share is something that can unite us. It sometimes seems as though everyone wants to get rid of the people who appear to be broken, but as Stevenson says in his book, “We are all broken by something. We have all hurt someone and have been hurt…Being broken is what makes us human”. Once again, I encourage everyone to read “Just Mercy”. I have found that as I increase the diversity of the authors whose books I read, my experience becomes more and more transformative. After reading this book, I believe that through understanding and empathy, we can work towards building a more just and compassionate society where everyone is valued and treated with dignity.