Across the country, the movement to reduce jail populations and close ageing facilities has scored some notable victories. But where the tide of confinement has receded, it has exposed a significant tension: what to do about the people still behind bars? Can efforts to improve their conditions of confinement be pursued in tandem with work to stem the flow of people into the facilities detaining them?
At the Center for Court Innovation we are committed to both the long-term goal of reducing incarceration and humanizing confinement in the here and now. This issue brief summarizes the discussions at a two-day convening we held in 2019 called, 'Humanizing American Jails and Prison: An International Summit.'
James Jeter, Justice Fellow, Propel Capital, at our summit, 'Humanizing American Jails and Prison.' Images: Samiha Amin Meah
Celso Manata, Public Prosecutor, Portugal Court of Appeals
Marilyn Mosby, State’s Attorney, Baltimore City
Liubov Romanova, Fellow, McCain Institute for International Leadership
Tshaka Barrows (right), Chief Executive Officer, The W. Haywood Burns Institute, and Julian Adler, Director of Policy and Research, Center for Court Innovation
Karl Racine, Attorney General, Washington, D.C.
Baltimore City State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby and Washington, D.C., Attorney General Karl Racine discuss conditions in jails and prisons on our New Thinking podcast.