Corrections is a Misnomer
Interview of Author Ben Austen
On Wednesday, May 15, at noon, Rabbi Feinberg will interview Ben Austen, the author of Correction: Parole, Prison, and the Possibility of Change. 
Ben Austen is a journalist from Chicago. He is the author of Correction: Parole, Prison, and the Possibility of Change, named one of the best books of 2023 by the Washington Post. His book High-Risers: Cabrini-Green and the Fate of American Public Housing was longlisted for the Andrew Carnegie Medal of Excellence in Nonfiction and named one of the best books of 2018 by Booklist, Mother Jones, and the public libraries of Chicago and St. Louis. A former editor at Harper’s Magazine, Ben teaches in the Creative Writing Program at the University of Chicago. His feature writing has appeared in the New York Times Magazine, GQ, Wired, and many other publications. He is the writer and host of the upcoming Audible Originals podcasts The Last Days of Cabrini-Green and The Parole Room, and he is the co-host, with Khalil Gibran Muhammad, of the podcast Some of My Best Friends Are….
The interview will be on Zoom on Wednesday, May 15 at noon. Please register for the talk by clicking here. Upon registering we will send you the Zoom link.
Read Rabbi Feinberg's review of Correction: Parole, Prison, and the Possibility of Change below.
Corrections is a Misnomer for American Prisons
Review of Correction: Parole, Prison, and the Possibility of Change.
Rabbi Charles Feinberg
State and Federal prisons are usually called correctional institutions. FCI is the acronym for “Federal Correctional Institution.” Most of the 122 federal prisons are FCI. In Maryland and Virginia, most of the state prisons are called correctional institutions. Yet federal and state prisons don’t spend much of their budget on helping incarcerated people make different decisions for themselves. Educational, vocational, medical, and mental health opportunities are few and far between. Drug rehab programs are limited with long waiting periods to get into them. Many prisons don’t even offer drug rehab programs.
Ben Austen, who is a Chicago-based journalist and a faculty member at the University of Chicago, has written a compelling book on what happens to people who spend a long time in Illinois state prisons. The book centers on two men, Michael and Johnnie who were convicted of violent crimes in the early 1970s. Mr. Austen has befriended both men and learned as much as he could about their incarceration.
As the Prison Policy Initiative has reported, Illinois is one of 34 states that even offer discretionary parole, and those that do are generally not set up to help people earn release. As Mr. Austen documents, parole boards often choose to deny the majority of those who appear before them. Correction then is the story of Michael and Jonnie’s quest to be paroled before the end of their lives.
Both men were convicted over 50 years ago of killing another man. When he was 19, Michael, who lived in East St. Louis, Illinois, killed a young man while trying to rob him so he could buy some beer. The young man refused to hand over any money, and Michael shot him. Johnnie, who lived in Chicago, was convicted of killing two Chicago policemen on the grounds of the Cabrini-Green Housing Project. Michael was sentenced to 101 years in prison. Jonnie was sentenced to an indeterminate sentence of 100 to 199 years.
Michael eventually admitted that he killed the young man during an aborted robbery. Jonnie, on the other hand, has always insisted on his innocence. Indeed, Mr. Austen brings persuasive evidence that Johnnie could not have committed the murders. He was in a place that made it almost impossible to shoot the policemen given where they were standing. Witnesses lied and the prosecutor’s theory of the case did not line up with the facts. But two policemen were shot dead in the line of duty. It was a sensational case in Chicago. Someone had to pay.
What we learn from Mr. Austen’s account is how perverse the incentives are for a person to be paroled. The record that an incarcerated person compiles in prison: how many infractions he incurred, how many educational opportunities he took advantage of, and how determined he is to change his life and prepare for life after prison often make little impression on a parole board. What matters is that a person must show remorse for his crime, no matter how little or how much that person has changed.
We find out that this makes a big difference for Johnnie who insisted throughout his long incarceration that he was innocent of the crime he was convicted of. The Parole Board could not imagine releasing anyone who killed two policemen and not show any remorse. Michael, on the other hand, did admit to his crime and did show remorse through most of the time of his incarceration.
We also learn how influential the families of victims are. Family members of victims lobby the parole board not to consider releasing a person no matter how much he or she has changed. Often family members believe that the memory of their loved one will be desecrated if the perpetrator is released. In Johnnie’s case, Chicago policemen, most of whom were born decades after the deceased officers were murdered, regularly showed up at Johnnie’s parole hearing to make sure that Johnnie never was ever released.
After reading Correction, I came away believing that our society---not just our criminal justice institutions---is overly focused on punishment and pays at best lip service to the idea that people can change, they can self-correct. Because we are so hooked on punishment, we all become trapped by the memory of the crime and the victim. We have an incredibly hard time accepting that a person can change, and we allow the memory of the victim to paralyze us. Everyone involved in the crime---perpetrators, law enforcement, judges, and the victim’s loved ones--- becomes mired in the past.
Mr. Austen tells a great story about two men and their journey through the criminal justice system. By doing so, he sheds much light on the reality of criminal justice in America.
You have a chance to listen to Mr. Austen at a Zoom meeting and ask him a question on Wednesday, May 15 at noon. Click here to register for the program. Once you register, we will send you the Zoom link.
May 02, 2024
March 2024 Newsletter
A lot has happened during the last month! For the first time, IAHR and the Virginia Coalition on Solitary was successful in having its solitary bill passed by both houses of the Virginia Legislature! The bill limits isolation to 15 consecutive days over 90 days with a maximum of 60 days for an entire year. We asking everyone on the link below to write to Governor Youngkin urging him to sign the legislation.
The last month has been busy in Maryland. A bill similar to our Virginia solitary bill was registered in the Legislature. Delegate N. Scott Phillips and Senator Mary Washington have been our lead sponsors. Below you will find an account of where we stand in Maryland.
You will also find an update on Kevin "Rashid" Johnson who has been engaged in a hunger strike at Red Onion Prison. Read about Kevin's situation below.
As we did last month, IAHR is publishing a report from the Prison Policy Initiative on incarceration in Maryland. The report has spiffy graphs on the distribution of incarcerated people, the racial makeup of those incarcerated, and a host of other important facts.
Action Alert: Write Governor Youngkin to sign HB1244/SB719 to End Prolonged Isolation In VA
Update on the Maryland Solitary Legislation
Update on Kevin "Rashid" Johnson
PPI: Maryland Incarceration Statistics
Action Alert: Support HB 1244/SB719 to End Prolonged Isolation in Virginia
IAHR urges all Virginia residents to support HB 1244 which ends prolonged isolation in Virginia State Prisons. It limits any isolation to no more than 15 consecutive days. HB 1244/SB719 passed both the Virginia House of Delegates and the Senate on Monday, March 5, 2024. This is a great accomplishment! This is the first time a bill limiting solitary has passed both houses in the Virginia Legislature.
We now need to press Governor Youngkin to sign the legislation.
Click on this link, prepared by S.A.L.T., to send a letter to Governor Youngkin urging him to sign HB1244.
Now is a critical moment to push for the Virginia legislature and Governor to restrict the use of Restorative housing and isolated confinement. Please take one minute to urge Virginia lawmakers to enact HB1244/SB719 today.
Photo from the New Yorker
Click Here to urge Governor Youngkin to end torture in VA State Prisons!
Click here to read more about the success of the VA Coalition on Solitary Confinement.
Update on Maryland Solitary Legislation
Members of the MD Coalition on Solitary spent March 6 and 7 in Annapolis preparing for our hearing with the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee and the House Judiciary Committee. We met with our lead sponsors, Senator Washington and Delegate 
Phillips, each day. They both impressed us with their commitment to the issue, their wanting to know more information and their sharing with us what we are up against. Two of the wardens and a Sheriff's deputy met with Delegate Phillips on Wednesday and presented their objections to him.
On Wednesday, a panel of six people presented our case for SB1085, limiting isolation in Maryland State prisons. The Committee members did not question us. However, one Corrections’ Commissioner and the current warden at MCI-Jessup testified against our bill. They argued on both days that limiting solitary would undermine security in the prisons. According to them, solitary is the fundamental way to maintain order. Without solitary there would be chaos. They also argued that there would be mass resignations of correctional officers if HB1144/SB1085 passed. We were not allowed to challenge their opinions.
On March 7, Delegate Phillips was very well prepared when he presented HB1144 to the whole committee. He prepared several of his colleagues to ask our panel questions as well. A similar cast of characters representing the Department spoke in opposition. Although we had stated that the bill excludes county correctional facilities, a county sheriff spoke against the bill. He said that if the bill passed, he was afraid we would come in next year with a bill addressed to county facilities. As they did the day before, the correctional officials argued that limiting solitary would undermine security and lead to mass resignations of staff. They didn't believe that limiting isolation would save any money, although we cited evidence that it did. They seemed to indicate that they would participate in a study on the issue.
Two other relevant pieces of legislation were also presented to the Judiciary Committee on March 7. One was the legislation to establish an ombudsman for the prison system. The other was to
establish an office that would have the authority to investigate every death that occurred in a state prison or county jail. There were many panels of people who spoke in favor of both bills. Each of these panels included relatives of incarcerated people who had been abused or died in a state prison. The testimony for these three pieces of legislation painted a picture of a correctional system in which many people suffer from prolonged isolation, inadequate medical care, physical abuse from correctional officers, and unexpected deaths. No opposition surfaced for the ombudsman bill or the office to investigate deaths in correctional facilities. Our legislation will be the hardest to get through since it directly challenges the leadership of DPSCS and the wardens.
The deadline for the Judiciary Committee to vote on our legislation is March 12. All legislation that has been voted on is passed to the other chamber on March 18, which is called “crossover day.” Updates to follow.
IAHR is grateful to Natasha White, Judge Phil Caroom, Margaret Barry, Olinda Moyd, Em Holcomb, and Bob Rhudy for testifying at the Maryland Legislative Hearings on March 6 and 7.
Top photo: Natasha White testifying before the Judicial Proceedings Committee. Judge Phil Caroom is seated next to Natasha.
Bottom photo: Margaret Barry testifying before the Judicial Proceedings Committee. Senator Mary Washington is seated next to Margaret.
Update on Kevin "Rashid" Johnson
By Phil Wilayto for the Virginia Defenders for Freedom, Justice & Equality
Rashid's court hearing scheduled for Monday, March 11, has been canceled
Kevin “Rashid” Johnson, a native of Richmond, is a politically conscious prisoner, author, poet and artist who is courageously and uncompromisingly challenging the Virginia Department of Corrections.
Rashid’s attorneys filed a motion for a preliminary injunction concerning the retaliation he has suffered for his political outspokenness. An emergency hearing on the motion was set for 9 a.m. Monday, March 11, in Judge Henry Hudson's courtroom in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, 701 E. Broad St. in Richmond. The Virginia Defenders called on everyone concerned about Prison Justice to come out for this hearing.
That court hearing has now been canceled.
According to his attorneys, progress is being made in reaching Rashid’s goal of not being sent back to Red Onion, where he believes he has been severely mistreated, or any other prison in Virginia's Western Region. This would allow him to remain closer to Richmond, where he has been receiving medical care for his serious ongoing health issues.
Click here for more information on Mr. Johnson.
PPI: Maryland profile
Maryland has an incarceration rate of 531 per 100,000 people (including prisons, jails, immigration detention, and juvenile justice facilities), meaning that it locks up a higher percentage of its people than almost any democratic country on earth. Read on to learn more about who is incarcerated in Maryland and why.
32,000 people from Maryland are behind bars
Additionally, the number of people impacted by county and city jails in Maryland is much larger than the graph above would suggest because people cycle through local jails relatively quickly. Each year, at least 83,000 different people are booked into local jails in Maryland.
Click here to read the rest of the Maryland Report.
March 12, 2024
February 2024 Newsletter
February is and will be a busy month for IAHR. HB 1244/SB719 which will end prolonged isolation in VA has now passed the House of Delegates Public Safety Committee and will pass to the Approprations Committee next week. Please respond to the action alert below.
You will also find an Action Alert for the DC Omnibus Crime Bill. The bill has too many provisions which will not help reduce the violence in DC while infringing on civil liberties.
We also have an update on our legislation in MD. We will have more to say about our efforts to promote that legislation next week.
Finally, please read the articles on NY City ending solitary at Rikers Island and the Prison Policy Initative's Report on how the criminal justice system impacts families.
Action Alert: Support HB1244/SB719 to End Prolonged Isolation In VA
Action Alert: Oppose the Secure DC Omnibus Crime Bill
Update on the Maryland Solitary Legislation
NYC Ends Solitary Confinement at Rikers Island
PPI: How the Criminal and Legal Child Welfare Systems Cooperate to Punish Families
Action Alert: Support HB 1244/SB719 to End Prolonged Isolation in Virginia
IAHR urges all Virginia residents to support HB 1244 which ends prolonged isolation in Virginia State Prisons. It limits any isolation to no more than 15 consecutive days. HB 1244/SB719 passed the House of Delegates Committee today by a vote of 4-2! It will come before the House Appropriations Committee next week.
Click on this link to send a message of support to all the members of the committee.
Now is a critical moment to push for the Virginia legislature and Governor to restrict the use of Restorative housing and isolated confinement. Please take one minute to urge Virginia lawmakers to enact HB1244/SB719 today.
Photo from the New Yorker
Click Here to Urge lawmakers to end torture in VA State Prisons!
Action Alert: Oppose the DC Omnibus Crime Bill
On Tuesday February 6, the DC Council will take its first vote on a bill called the Secure DC Omnibus. Unfortunately, despite multiple expert reports and significant advocacy in favor of proactive, evidence-based interventions, the Secure DC Omnibus bill is focused on short term, punitive tactics. Far too many parts of the bill are overly-broad and/or discredited approaches that are likely to do more harm than good. We urge you to take action against the worst of these measures, and join us in working towards equitable, sustainable public safety. Our task as religious people is not merely to reduce the presence of crime, it is to increase the presence of justice.
The most important action right now is flooding Council offices with phone calls opposing the worst provisions of the bill. Every call you make matters! Most offices track the number of calls they get, and even share them with each other.
Sample script:
Hi, My name is _____. I’m a resident of Ward __, and a [member of religious institution], OR [a resident of ______ neighborhood]. I’m calling to ask the Councilmember to support evidence-based measures to create sustainable public safety, not the punitive tactics in the Secure DC Omnibus. Specifically, I’m asking the Councilmember to oppose these provisions: the presumption in favor of pretrial detention; giving MPD authority to establish drug free zones; and reducing the accountability provided by Body-Worn Camera (BWC) footage.
I believe that each of these measures will do more harm than good. Again, I urge the Councilmember to support effective, community-centered initiatives instead. Thank you.
Click Here for DC Council Members and their Contact Information.
Click Here to read Paul Butler's Op-Ed criticizing the Omnibus Crime Bill
Update on Maryland Solitary Legislation
IAHR along with its coalition partners is readying solitary legislation to be introduced in the upcoming legislative sessions in Maryland and Virginia. Delegate N. Scott Phillips and Senator Mary Washington are the lead sponsors.
Highlights of the Proposed Legislation
- No one can be placed in isolation for longer than 15 consecutive days during a 60-day period and no more than a total of 18 days during the 60-day period.
- Anyone in restrictive housing must receive a mental health assessment within 24 hours.
- Anyone in restrictive housing must receive 4 hours of out of cell time.
- Mentally ill people with a few exceptions cannot be placed in isolation.
- Incarcerated people can ask to be placed in protective custody for a limited time.
End Long-Term Solitary Confinement in Maryland State Prisons--WHY?
It’s inhumane. According to the U.N. Special Rapporteur on Torture, there should be an absolute ban on restrictive housing (solitary confinement) for longer than 15 days. Isolation longer than 15 days is considered an act of torture. (Interim Report of the Special Rapporteur of the Human Rights Council on Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. A/66/268 (August 5, 2011), paragraph 78.)
It costs more money. States that have reduced solitary confinement have experienced significant savings. –
It doesn’t reduce violence; in fact, it may increase violence within and without the prison system.–
It is destructive to the goal of helping prisoners become contributing members of society when they get out.|
Some Facts about Restrictive Housing (Solitary) in Maryland
Nationally, 4-5% of those incarcerated are placed in restrictive housing. According to the 2022 report of the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services, 25.8% of incarcerated individuals were in restrictive housing (solitary) at least once, 7.5% more than the prior year. The average length of stay in restrictive housing (solitary) was 42.5 days.
In 2022, 135 people were released directly to the community, after spending an average of 59 days in restrictive housing.
As soon as Legislative Services completes the drafting of the bill and as soon as we know the bill number, we will send that to you. We will also send informaton about contacting the House Judiciary Committee.
NYC Council Overrides Mayor Adams' Vetoes on Legislation to Support Police Transparency and Ban Solitary Confinement
City Hall, NY – Today, the New York City Council voted to override Mayor Adams’ vetoes on Introduction 586-A and Introduction 549-A, with a vote of 42-9.
“Today, the Council answered decades-long calls from communities most impacted by police stops and the harmful legacy of stop-and-frisk, to deliver much-needed transparency to policing and advance true public safety for New Yorkers,” said Speaker Adrienne Adams. “By collecting and disclosing data on investigative stops, the How Many Stops Act will bring forth a fuller picture of these encounters, fostering accountability and trust between the police and the communities they serve. The Council was also proud to override the Mayor’s veto to ban solitary confinement in city jails and advance a new approach to reduce violence and prioritize safety for both staff and those detained. As government, we have a responsibility to do right by New Yorkers who have been persistently harmed and failed by these unjust policies. We are proud to override the Mayor’s vetoes and hold our government accountable for delivering transparency and true safety to all New Yorkers.”
Click here to read the rest of the press release.
PPI: How the Criminal and Child Welfare Systems Cooperate to Punish Families
Child protective service agencies position themselves as providers of welfare, but their relationship to the criminal legal system demonstrates their shared role in punishing families and exacerbating the conditions that lead to system involvement in the first place.
by Emma Peyton Williams, January 8, 2024
The harmful effects of the criminal legal system on children are well-established. For years, evidence has shown that a parent’s involvement with the criminal legal system can harm kids, and incarcerating children has lifelong consequences. We’ve reported on efforts in several states to mitigate the negative impact of the criminal legal system on children but seldom discussed how the criminal legal and child welfare systems are deeply interwoven. A growing number of advocates and experts are bringing these connections to light and are organizing for momentous change. This briefing draws attention to their work to argue that, by expanding our view beyond jails and prisons to include these related systems, advocates and policymakers can safeguard against creating prisons by another name.
Click Here to read the rest of the Report.
February 05, 2024