Gabriel City » News & Journalism

An American Journey

hcdmedia — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 18:38:28 +0000

In this documentary, set to be released in 2011, David Kaczynski sets out to tell the story of turning in the most sought after criminal in US history, his brother Ted, the notorious Unabomber. David’s journey intersects with three others, Gary Wright, Bud Welch and Bill Babbitt (and now, a fourth, Bob Curley), who together put a face on the death penalty and unexpectedly place the American justice system on trial.

The film follows the four men as they travel from New York to Texas, from Oklahoma to California on a road that takes them beyond crime and punishment and into their hearts and minds in “An American Journey.”

David is the Executive Director of New Yorkers For Alternatives to the Death Penalty.

See the trailer here http://www.qofj.com/media/AAL/Americanlife.html

Follow the film on Facebook.

Women Working Behind Bars

hcdmedia — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 17:10:52 +0000

Highlighting the fact that women make up 7% of the U.S. prison population, a Forbes.com commentary focuses on findings that the female prison population is growing at twice the rate of their male counterparts.

Click here to read the Forbes commentary.

Soros Fellowship for Woman Ex-Prisoner

hcdmedia — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 16:48:18 +0000

Flozelle Woodmore, who served 20 years of a life sentence for killing her abusive partner, is among the rare few to have gained freedom after being sentenced to life in prison in California. Woodmore will organize friends and family members of people serving life sentences to advocate for change in the parole system.

In August 2007, after 10 parole hearings (and being found suitable six times), Woodmore was finally released from prison. While in prison, Woodmore obtained her GED, completed a vocational certification program, assisted with creating a battered women group, and became a member of an initiative to support youth at-risk of becoming ensnared in the criminal justice system. Since her release, Woodmore has been active in advocacy campaigns with a range of local and statewide organizations, in an effort tot reduce California’s reliance on incarceration and harsh punishment.

New CEPR report on “The High Budgetary Cost of Incarceration”

hcdmedia — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 14:31:37 +0000

Click here to read the new Center for Economic and Policy Research report titled “The High Budgetary Cost of Incarceration.”

This CEPR press release adds comments and details about the report:

“State and local governments are under tremendous fiscal pressure,” said John Schmitt, a senior economist at CEPR and lead author of the report. ”Shifting just half of the non-violent offenders from prison and jail to probation and parole could save state and local governments $15 billion per year.

The study points out that some of the main causes of the rise in incarceration rates are policies such as “mandatory minimums” and “three strikes” laws that often lead to long prison terms for non-violent offenders. Earlier research on the connection between crime and incarceration suggests that state and local governments could shift non-violent offenders from jail and prison to probation and parole with little or no deterioration in public safety.

Among key findings are:

In 2008, one in every 48 working-age men were in prison or jail
Non-violent offenders make up over 60 percent of the prison and jail population; non-violent drug offenders account for one-fourth of all offenders behind bars
The total number of violent crimes in the United States was only about three percent higher in 2008 than it was in 1980. Over the same period, the U.S. population increased by 33 percent while the prison and jail population skyrocketed by more than 350 percent.

After Graduation, Back to Sing Sing Cellblock, With Hope

hcdmedia — Mon, 07 Jun 2010 15:11:55 +0000

In 1990, federal and state governments forbade giving government education grants to convicted felons, disbanding the many programs which provided education to prison inmates. Programs such as the Hudson Link for Higher Education were created in response to cutbacks.

At the June graduation this year, 28 men walked down the aisle to receive their diplomas. Ten men received their Bachelor of Science degree and 18 men earned Associates degrees. So far, Sing Sing, with the assistance of Hudson Link for Higher Education, has produced 196 graduates and an additional 107 inmates are currently enrolled in the program. It is interesting to note, out of the 196 graduates, 41 inmates have been released and not one has returned to prison. Nationally, about 60 percent of inmates released from prison come back.

Click here to read the New York Times article.

Doing Time, And Doing Good, In La.’s Angola Prison

hcdmedia — Fri, 28 May 2010 17:37:07 +0000

Click here to read or listen to NPR’s Terry Gross interview with Wilbert Rideau.

Wilbert Rideau was sent to Louisisana’s notorious Angola prison in 1961, at the age of 19, for killing a bank-teller hostage after a botched robbery. After 44 years and multiple retrials, he was released on Jan. 15, 2005.

Exonerated Man, Accuser Forge Rare Bond

hcdmedia — Thu, 27 May 2010 18:29:28 +0000

An amazing story about the power of forgiveness. Click to read:

Part I: Exonerated Man, Accuser Forge Rare Bond

Part II: Exonerated after 14 years, inmate and his fiancee start life together at last

South Carolina Prison Deficit

hcdmedia — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 13:42:46 +0000

The South Carolina Department of Corrections has run up a $29 million deficit. Legislators are considering the release of nonviolent inmates early to ease budget costs. Governor Mark Sanford has stated that he is opposed to releasing nonviolent offenders.

Actor Spends Night at Angola

hcdmedia — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 22:00:30 +0000

Oscar winning actor William Hurt spent a night at Angola Prison in Louisiana to prepare for his role as an ex-convict in the upcoming film The Yellow Handkerchief. According to Hurt, experiencing prison life for himself was crucial to being able to embody his character and tell the story well. Read more here.

Art Behind Bars in Florida Prison

hcdmedia — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 21:46:09 +0000

The Monroe County Detention Center in Key West Florida has an innovative art program that has been going on for 15 years. Helping inmates by giving them healthy outlets for rehabilitation.

Founded by Lynne Vantriglia in 1994, the program is a nonprofit and claims to “significantly increase the effectiveness of incarceration at reducing the number of re-offenders, saving the tax-payers of Monroe County over $2,000,000 and increasing the availability of revenue producing Federal use units.”

You can find out more information on the website and watch this 1o min video about the project:

Click here to view the embedded video.