Posts Tagged ‘prison’
As Prop 57 goes into effect, experts debate impact on youth, prison overcrowding
In November, Californians passed Proposition 57 by a 64.5 percent vote. Formally known as the California Parole for Non-Violent Criminals and Juvenile Court Trial Requirements Initiative, and strongly endorsed by Governor Jerry Brown, Oakland’s former mayor, the new law attempts to ease prison overcrowding by increasing parole opportunities for inmates and changing how juvenile offenders…
Read MoreTales of Two Cities: Marked
This week’s episode features stories of people who are marked. Individuals tagged in some way and navigating the expectations that come along with their markings.
Read MoreCommunity members celebrate The Ella Baker Center’s 20th anniversary
Last Thursday residents gathered to celebrate the Ella Baker Center’s 20th Anniversary, present awards and discuss future plans to continue rebuilding communities of color in Oakland.
Read MoreHundreds gather in Oakland to address prison reform
A new wave of activists focused on life after prison set a national agenda for reform.
Read MoreOne year after Proposition 47’s passage, is it working in the Bay Area?
As the one-year anniversary of Prop. 47’s passage approaches, many people working in the state’s legal system are evaluating its effectiveness.
Read MoreSecond chances: An ex-convict’s path to higher education
On an early October morning in 1990, Ralph Spinelli swung open the back door of a large restaurant as he shoved his other hand into the pocket of his lightweight windbreaker, pretending to hold a gun. He had eaten at the restaurant several times before and knew that the door was unlocked around that time…
Read MoreReggie Bailey’s Barbershop
“My last trip in the penitentiary, I had to make a decision on what I wanted to do with my life,” said Reggie Bailey, sitting in the swiveling barber chair in his small shop in the heart of downtown Oakland. “I just decided to go to barber college.”
Read MoreAlameda County prepares for influx of inmates as state reduces prison population
Alameda County’s incarceration system may struggle to support the coming influx of inmates this July as California shifts the supervision of its prisoners from state to local facilities in order to meet a court-ordered prison population reduction strategy. In May, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that overcrowding in California’s 33 prisons has caused conditions that…
Read MoreOakland nonprofit helps parolees land on their feet
Veronica Hays stares out the window of a 12-person van cruising down I-580. In front and behind her, other passengers chat quietly with one another. Riding in a van with other parolees like herself on their way to volunteer has become a regular Saturday routine for Hays. This week they’re heading to the Alameda Food Bank where they will spend the afternoon organizing food donations. For Hays, just the thought of her sitting in this van, sober and out of prison, is enough to make her smile.
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