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"You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model which makes the existing model obsolete."
Buckminster Fuller |
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From Cell block to City Block - Working to break the cycle and “end the odds” that a person released from prison will recidivate based on what did and
did not take
place
in
prison.
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(posted 4/21/09)
House Bill #2240 bill to establish of a Massachusetts Correction Commission.
Bill sponsored by State Representative Kay Khan
This legislation restores the statutory requirement for the establishment of an independent advisory board for the Department of Correction.
Read/download the bill (pdf) 
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Study: Mass. fifth in nation for adults in prison, probation or parole
By Laura Crimaldi | Monday, March 2, 2009 Boston Herald
An astonishing one in 24 Bay State adults were either behind bars or under community supervision at the end of 2007, costing taxpayers $1.25 billion, according to a national study published today.
The report, prepared by the Pew Center on the States, ranked Massachusetts fifth in the country in terms of the number of adults in prison or jail or under the supervision of probation or parole. The study said that $1.25 billion was spent on corrections at the state and federal level in 2007 statewide.
“In any year, spending $1.25 billion dollars on corrections is stunning.
In a fiscal crisis, this kind of spending is unacceptably foolish. If finances is what finally moves the state to revamp its correctional policies, so be it,” said Leslie Walker, executive director of Massachusetts Correctional Legal Services.
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The purpose of this report is to capture the themes and recommendations from oral testimony and to give voice to prisoners’ written testimony that was not read at the hearing because of time constraints. A full transcript of oral testimony is available at www.endtheodds.org. Copies of written testimony not read at the hearing are available upon request.
The report briefly summarizes what is--or was--working, with respect to preparation for a successful reentry and what is impeding successful reentry now. The remainder of the report outlines wide ranging recommendations for successful reentry outcomes. At the heart of the recommendations you will hear a cry for dignity, meaningful activity, civic engagement, and hope. Not programs alone, but policies, practices, and the very culture and structure of the prisons are critical to successful reentry and reintegration.
(read report)
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Prison Blues
Commissioner Clarke gets an earful at a local hearing
By Cara Bayles | Weekly Dig
Posted Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Last Tuesday, approximately 100 people filed into St. Paul's Cathedral for a public hearing with Department of Corrections (DOC) Commissioner Harold Clarke. The event was organized by the End the Odds Coalition, a group of activists (among them, former state Rep. Mel King) promoting a humane culture within the Massachusetts prison system.
(read more..)
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From Cell Block to City Block: Strategies for a Successful Re-Entry
Posted Wednesday, November 18, 2008
With incarceration rates reaching a staggering 1 in 100 Americans and violence on the rise throughout the Commonwealth, successful re-entry for prisoners has become a focal point for the Department of Correction and Massachusetts residents. It is clear that we cannot incarcerate our crime problem; the strategy needs to shift to prevention and cost reduction.
(read more.. and listen to audio tapes and read transcripts of the hearing)
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