JPI News Digest 6/20/12
Published: June 20, 2012
CANADA: Private Prison Companies Look to Canada as Industry Faces Lawsuits in US (The Guardian)
US private prison firms are targeting Canada for fresh opportunities as pressure builds at home on the troubled multi-billion dollar industry from human rights groups and legal actions, and as more states look to scale back their reliance on them.
MS: Prison Firm Abandons Mississippi Amid Lawsuits and Scathing Federal Study (The Guardian)
"This is not something that any parent that has gone through this kind of thing would wish on another parent," said Veronica Kincaid. Kincaid is referring to the time that her son spent within the walls of the immense Walnut Grove Youth Correctional Facility in Walnut Grove, Mississippi. The 1,500 bed facility has been operated by the Geo Group, the number two company in the private prison business (after the Corrections Corporation of America), since it took over from the Cornell Companies, which it bought in 2010. Geo, a publically traded company, lists operations in the US, South Africa, Australia, the UK and Canada, where they have recently lobbied the government in search of new opportunities.
BLOG: Invisible Prisoners: Why Are So Many Children, Especially Girls, Placed in Solitary Confinement? (RH Reality Check)
When we hear about solitary confinement, we often imagine it as a form of extreme punishment inflicted on the most vicious and dangerous criminals in prison. The last thing you would expect is for this practice to be inflicted on children. But it is. All across this country, children are being placed in solitary for a host of different reasons ranging from ‘protection’ to the most minor misbehaviors.
FL: Civil Citation Trumps Lockup for Kids in Florida (News Press)
Florida law enforcement and criminal justice officials say the use of civil citations for troubled youth, rather than a lockup, is slashing costs and giving kids a better chance of a turnaround. And they want the practice to become more widespread.
ONLINE: Researchers Advise Criminal Law to Consider New Discoveries in Neuroscience (The Examiner)
According to researchers the criminal justice system should take greater account of new discoveries in neuroscience which show how a difficult childhood can affect the development of a young person’s brain which can lead to an increased risk of adolescent crimes. This consideration has often raised serious conflicts in dealing with the justice system due to feelings the psychiatric answer to confronting such problems is generally no better than the criminal justice system's approach.
CA: UCSF-Old Prisoners Need Better Medical Care (San Francisco Business Times)
As the U.S. prison population has soared, the number of old prisoners has ballooned, and they need much better medical treatment than they're getting now, according to a University of California, San Francisco study.
Posted in Criminal Justice News