Blog
New Report Describes Reform Coming to the Broken Cash Bail System
The Pretrial Justice Institute has released a report, “Where Pretrial Improvements are Happening,” about progress being made in improving pretrial practices. In an interview, Cherise Fanno Burdeen, the CEO of the Pretrial Justice Institute, talked about these issues within North Carolina. Burdeen pointed out the cash-bail system, the for-profit bail bond industry, and pre-trail services […]
Wake County Judge Orders the Release of Law Enforcement Video in Police Beating Case
Judge A. Graham Shirley of Wake County has ordered certain video and audio recordings from the Wake County Sheriff department, Raleigh police department, and state troopers to be released. They are now available to be viewed by the public.
Police Searches in Asheville to Face New Restrictions, Including Written Consent
The Asheville City Council has voted to make three changes to how police can search drivers or pedestrians. The most significant requires that police receive written permission before they search someone, unless they have “probable cause” to believe a crime has been committed. Additionally, the grounds for valid searches were restricted, and regulatory stops like traffic stops were de-emphasized.
Poetry Performance to Respond to Jumpsuit Project
Join poet, writer and educator Dasan Ahanu and the Black On Black Project for a Spoken Word performance Thursday, May 10 at 7 p.m. inside Artspace in downtown Raleigh. The program will be a response to artfor(us), the latest art exhibition from Sherrill Roland. Best known for his Jumpsuit Project, in which Roland enters museum and […]
NC Alliance for Women Reentrants and their Children May Meeting
The NC Alliance for Women Reentrants and their Children will hold their monthly meeting on May 17th from 10am to 12pm at First Presbyterian Church in Raleigh. During this meeting, guest speaker Kay Sanford will be in attendance. Sanford is a former state injury epidemiologist and current NC Harm Reduction Coalition volunteer who works in NC prisons/jails. She […]
Correctional Facilities Rely on Videoconferencing to Provide Medical Care
When an inmate requires a visit with a medical specialist, some correctional institutions are providing care through “telemedicine,” which allows them to see a doctor by video. There are many challenges that can make it difficult to provide in person visits. Prisons are often located in rural areas that are isolated from certain medical specialists. Traveling to medical […]
NCAOC Develops School Justice Partnership Toolkit
The North Carolina Administrative Office of the Courts is developing a Toolkit for chief district court judges and other stakeholders to implement School Justice Partnerships. The Toolkit provides resources to help community partners develop and implement the School Justice Partnership, including action lists, timelines, a model agreement, and templates for other necessary documents. The School […]
New Book Explores Troubling Treatment of Mental Illness in Jails
In her new book, “Insane: America’s Criminal Treatment of Mental Illness,” journalist Alisa Roth explores the incarceration of mentally ill individuals in the United States. She exposes a world in which correctional officers are substituted for mental health professionals without adequate training, and are left to manage a widespread mental health crisis in prisons and jails. Roth […]
NC State Bar Investigates Lawyer for Treatment of Vulnerable Exonerees
The North Carolina state bar has launched an investigation against Florida lawyer Patrick Megaro for his treatment of two North Carolina exonerees, one of whom was exonerated from death row. Henry McCollum and his half-brother Leon served decades in prison for the rape and murder of an 11 year old girl before DNA evidence proved their […]
Memorial Powerfully Confronts Legacy of Lynching
On April 26, 2018, The Equal Justice Initiative opened the Memorial for Peace and Justice. It also opened the Legacy Museum, which tells the stories of the over 4,000 people killed by racial terror lynchings in the century after the Civil War. The museum highlights the connections between this history of terror to modern manifestations of violence […]
Mecklenberg County Commissioner Advocates for Hiring of Individuals with Criminal Records
Mecklenburg County commissioner Pat Cotham recently urged three health care CEOs to consider hiring people with criminal records as a way to give them a second chance. Her request occurred as part of a Charlotte Chamber health care summit, during a conversation about fighting local poverty. She was speaking to the chief executives of Atrium Health, Novant […]
NC Prisons Recognize Humanism as Religion
Kwame Teague is incarcerated at Warren Correctional Institution in North Carolina. Recently, after a six year process, Teague successfully petitioned to have humanism officially recognized as a religion by the North Carolina prison system. The American Humanist Association describes humanism as a nontheistic belief system and a “rational philosophy informed by science, inspired by art, and motivated […]
Prison Employees Get Minimal Punishment for Crimes on the Job
In a series of articles published last year, the News and Observer exposed rampant corruption in North Carolina prisons. In response, state lawmakers asked DPS to provide information about crimes committed by prison employees while on the job. A review of these crimes shows a pattern of employees receiving minimal punishment. In one case, an officer was accused […]
Fee Waiver Limitation Plan Details Emerge
Do you think judges should be shamed for refusing to criminalize poverty? As CJPC has reported before, the state legislature has enacted a plan to discourage judges from waiving court fines and fees. The legislature has required noticed to be mailed to every state or local entity that gets a portion of court fines and fees so […]
CJPC Partners with NC ACLU to Develop DA Questionnaires
The Carolina Justice Policy Center and the North Carolina ACLU have partnered together to provide a district attorney candidate questionnaire for the upcoming May 8th primary elections. The questionnaire is designed to help voters assess which candidates support criminal justice reform. To view the questionnaire and candidate responses, click here.