news
July 31, 2018
State Advocacy News: Transforming Closed Adult and Youth Prisons
Lessons for stakeholders include prioritizing prison population reduction efforts and planning for prison repurposing.
news
July 19, 2018
Disenfranchisement News: Expanding voter rights education in jails
Legislation in California and Illinois would require jails to provide voter education and make in-person or absentee voting available to all eligible incarcerated voters.
Andres Idarraga
After his release in June of 2004, Andres Idarraga became a full-time student at Brown University studying comparative literature and economics while maintaining full-time employment. Idarraga saw his right to vote as a significant and crucial aspect to rebuilding his life and to contributing to his community.
publications
July 17, 2018
Felony Disenfranchisement: A Primer
A striking 6.1 million Americans are prohibited from voting due to laws that disenfranchise citizens convicted of felony offenses. Felony disenfranchisement rates vary by state, as states institute a wide range of disenfranchisement policies.
publications
July 06, 2018
The Sentencing Project files Amicus Brief in Florida Felony Disenfranchisement Suit
Our amicus brief highlights the punitive and arbitrary nature of Florida's voting rights restoration process, and argues that disenfranchisement is counterproductive to effective reentry.
Denver Schimming
As a previously incarcerated person who had his voting rights restored in 1996, Denver Schimming knew the power and importance of voting. His years in prison taught him that the criminal justice system could change only if impacted people spoke out. After his incarceration, voting was one of his highest priorities.
publications
June 22, 2018
Trends in U.S. Corrections
The Sentencing Project's key fact sheet provides a compilation of major developments in the criminal justice system over the past several decades.
news
June 18, 2018
State Advocacy News: Advocacy Planning for Criminal Justice Reform
Summer offers an opportunity for advocates to build momentum for policy and organizing goals. Our State Advocacy Newsletter offers strategies and tools you can use for your next campaign.
Kimberly Haven
Kimberly Haven’s journey as an advocate began when she sought to regain her own voting rights after release from a Maryland prison in 2001. She soon became passionate about the unfairness of disenfranchising citizens after they have completed their sentence and returned to the community.
news
May 24, 2018
Disenfranchisement News: Louisiana expands voting rights to people on probation and parole
Louisiana lawmakers pass a bill to restore voting rights to people on probation and parole after a 5 year waiting period, Indiana lawsuit seeks damages for denying people in jail access to the polls, and more in Disenfranchisement News.
news
May 01, 2018
State Advocacy News: Grassroots Actions to Challenge Mass Incarceration
Coalitions in Maryland, Mississippi, and Kentucky mobilized to counter regressive sentencing measures by promoting solutions addressing underlying causes of crime.
Marlo Hargrove and David Waller
Marlo Hargrove and David Waller both successfully regained their voting rights after receiving felony convictions and serving their sentences.
news
April 30, 2018
Jeff Sessions is shamefully undermining WEB Du Bois's legacy
A justice department program of research fellowships in the civil rights leader’s name has been twisted to suit the attorney general’s agenda
news
April 05, 2018
Disenfranchisement News: Woman sentenced to 5 years for voting with a felony conviction
A woman on supervised release voted in the November election and was sentenced to 5 years in prison, Florida officials appeal court order to reform system for restoring voting rights, and more in Disenfranchisement News.
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