the crime report

The annual H.F. Guggenheim symposium has emerged as a key date on the nation’s calendar of criminal justice events, primarily because it is the only conference that brings together a select audience of journalists, academics, practitioners and policy makers to discuss current issues of criminal justice facing the nation. You are cordially invited to join [...]

When Paul Butler joined the Department of Justice in 1990 as  a prosecutor in Washington, D.C., he considered himself an “undercover brother.” As a young black lawyer — he was 29 – in a mostly white office, and a progressive in a lock-‘em-up culture, he thought he could make the system fairer from the inside. He [...]

A new paper by the National Institute of Justice examines the challenges that the new generation of cell phones poses to the corrections community. Now smaller than ever and with both audio, video and data capacity, the NIJ reports that cell phones have been used to conduct illegal activity.  In the first half of 2008, [...]

The adult correctional population in the United States has been rising steadily since 1980, with nearly 2.4 million people behind bars at any time as of 2007 and another 5 million on some form of probation or parole. All told, 3.2 percent of residents, or 1 in every 31 adults, was under some form of [...]

Washington
Press contact: Kara McCarthy (202) 307-1241
http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs
 
Among its many reports, BJS issues an annual compilation of prison population by state and probation and parole populations nationally. The data often lag; for example, figures for 2007 were issued in December 2008.

Washington
http://www.bop.gov
(202) 514-6551 (media inquiries)
 
The federal government operates 114 corrections facilities housing about 200,000 inmates. Information about each facility can be found on the bureau’s web site. Although white-collar crime and national security cases get most of the attention when a federal prison is mentioned in news stories, such defendants make up under 10 percent of [...]

Washington
(202) 307-3106
http://www.nicic.org
 
This agency, part of the U.S. Bureau of Prisons, provides training and technical assistance, and “leadership to influence correctional policies, practices and operations nationwide.” Its Web site includes links to important research in the corrections field.

Washington, D.C.
http://www.aclu.org/prison/index.html
(212) 549-2666 (media inquiries)
media@aclu.org
 
The ACLU runs the only national litigation office for prisoners. The agency says that it is represented more than 100,000 inmates since 1972. ACLU lawsuits have led to court supervision of entire state prison systems as well as individual facilities. The group’s current legal docket is available on its web site.

Alexandria, Va.
http://www.aca.org
(800) 222-5616
Press contact: Gabriella Daley Klatt
gdaley@aca.org
 
ACA is the nation’s largest professional organization for prison managers and workers. It serves as the voluntary accreditation agency for corrections facilities. ACA publishes Corrections Today magazine and Corrections Compendium, a journal of research on corrections issues. It holds two conventions each year, in winter and summer.

Hagerstown, Md.
http://www.aja.org
(301) 790-3930
Gwyn Smith-Ingley, executive director (ext. 24)
gwyns@aja.org
 
AJA represents those who work in county and local jails nationwide. It publishes a magazine, American Jails. The group offers technical assistance, a Certified Jail Manager program, and training seminars.

Lexington , Ky.
http://www.appa-net.org
Diane Kincaid, media contact
(859) 244-8196
dkincaid@csg.org
 
APPA is an international professional association of people working in probation, parole, and community-based corrections programs both in the adult and juvenile sectors.

New York City
http://www.apaintl.org/en/index.html
(877) 318-2724
info@apaintl.org
 
The association represents parole boards and other government release agencies. It is a good source for state parole board contacts.

Connecticut
http://www.asca.net
George Camp, director
(860) 704-6410
 
An organization of administrators from state corrections agencies, ASCA is a good source for research on correctional management, strategies, data about employees, and trends. The group also has information about accreditation and correctional standards.

San Francisco
http://www.cjcj.org
Daniel Macallair, director
(415) 621-5661, ext. 310
dmacallair@cjcj.org
 
This non profit agency aims to promote “a balanced and humane criminal justice system” through director services, technical assistance, and policy analysis. It is involved in issues of sentencing, probation, parole, prisoner re-entry and juvenile justice, among others. It publishes a Justice Policy Journal.

New York
http://correctionalassociation.org
Robert Gangi, executive director
(212) 254-5700
rgangi@correctionalassociation.org
 
Founded in 1844, the association monitors prison and jail commissions and is the only private organization in New York State that has the power to conduct on-site inspections of correctional facilities and report findings and recommendations to government authorities.

Washington
http://www.curenational.org
Charles Sullivan, director
(202) 789-2126
cure@curenational.org
 
CURE is a grassroots organization that represents prisoners and their families. It can put journalists in touch with members in many states who have a good knowledge of prison conditions.

Chicago
http://www.john-howard.org
Malcolm Young, executive director
(312) 782-1901
myoung@john-howard.org
The association, founded in 1901, provides oversight of Illinois corrections facilities. It says it “promotes fair, humane, and effective sentencing and correctional policies, addresses inmate concerns, and provides Illinois citizens and decision-makers with information needed to improve criminal and juvenile justice. Association staff and volunteers inspect jails, prisons, and juvenile facilities [...]

Washington, D.C.
http://www.iccaweb.org
Jane Browning, executive director
(202) 828-5605
icca@iccaweb.org
 
ICCA is a private, non-profit, membership organization that represents residential and other community corrections programs.

Washington, D.C.
http://centerforcommunitycorrections.org/?page_id=13
Don Santarelli, chairman
202-955-7070
jmurphy@bellboyd.com
 
The committee describes itself as a “public-private coalition that promotes an effective system of community-based sanctions.” Its membership includes leaders in the criminal justice field, including those in enforcement, corrections, treatment, and civic affairs. The committee meets bi-monthly, serving as a clearinghouse for new developments and providing support for the responsible implementation of [...]

Oakland, Ca.
http://www.nccd-crc.org
Brrry Krisberg, president
(510) 208-0500
Media contact—Anna Boldon
aboldon@mw.nccd-crc.org
 
NCCD, which calls itself “the oldest criminal justice research organization in America,” advocates “effective, humane, fair, and economically sound solutions to family, community, and justice problems.” It conducts research, promotes reform initiatives, and works with public and private organizations, the news media, and others on crime issues. President Barry [...]