Arizona

News Article Tucson Sentinel.com July 14, 2016

Advocates: Fast-track immigration courts costly, ineffective

This Tucson Sentinel article quotes Indefensible author Judith Greene and co-author Bethany Carson, with additional quotes of Judge Felix Recio, retired Federal Magistrate for Brownsville, Texas.  Reporter Paul Ingram of the Sentinel explains how programs such as Operation Streamline rely on privately operated for-profit prisons under contract with the federal government to incarcerate migrants, and how, since 2003, 155 people have died in ICE facilities nationwide. 

News Article Common Dreams July 14, 2016

End 'Operation Streamline': How One Human Rights Disater is Driving Several More

This article by Deirdre Fulton quotes Justice Strategies' director Judith Greene as she calls expanded mirgrant prosecutions under Operation Streamline the latest contributor to mass incarcertion, straining an already overcrowded federal prison system.  The article goes on to cover several of the key findings of Justice Strategies' and Grassroots Leadership's book length report, Indefensible,  the full version of which may be downloaded free here on our website, along with book highlights, our press release, and media and advocates conference call audio conducted July 13, 2016.

News Article The Guardian July 14, 2016

Prosecutioin of illegal entry a driving force in mass incarceration in US

This article by Renee Feltz of the Guardian describes how the prosecution of individuals crossing the U.S. border for entry, a misdemeanor, and re-entry, a federal felony, has become a driving force behind mass incarceration as detailed in Justice Strategies' and Grassrooots Leadership's most recent book length report, Indefensible: A Decade of Mass Incarceration of Migrants Prosecuted for Crossing the Border, released July 13, 2016.  The book, book highlights, press release and an audio recording of our media and advocacy conference call are available for download free of charge, here on our website. 

News Article Univision July 13, 2016

Prosecuting Migrants is an Indefensible Failure

This Univsion Op-Ed by Justice Strategies' Judith Greene, Grassroots Leadership's Bethany Carson, and writer and lawyer Arjun Singh Sethi, makes the case for why Operation Streamline is a moral and policy failure, as described in detail in our most recently released book length report, Indefensible: A Decade of Mass Incarceration of Migrants Prosecuted for Crossing the Border.  The book, book highlights, our press release and an audio of our recent media and advocates conference call, are available free here on Justice Strategies website. 

JS Publication July 13, 2016

Indefensible: A Decade of Mass Incarceration of Migrants Prosecuted for Crossing the Border

"Indefensible,” a new book from Justice Strategies and Grassroots Leadership, examines the costs and failures of over a decade of criminalization of border migration. Operation Streamline was launched in 2005 and added criminal convictions to the previous civil removal process, and is known for the disturbing spectacle of mass courtroom proceedings in which up to 80 shackled migrants are arraigned, convicted and sentenced for misdemeanor improper entry charges. While the Streamline courts have been scaled back in several districts, the legacy continues in federal courts, and includes related massive immigration prosecutions for both improper entry and felony re-entry. In 2015, half (49 percent) of all federal prosecutions were made up of what is essentially a crime of trespassing, in the form of improper entry and re-entry prosecutions. Read more »

JS Publication March 16, 2016

Day Fines & The Fare Probation Experiment

This article by Susan Tucker and Judith Greene on the Maricopa County day fines program was first published in 1999 (The Justice System Journal Vol. 21 No. 1, 1999).  Recently, there has been growing interest in day fines from the media, the US Department of Justice, criminal justice reform advocates and academics as a consequence of events in Ferguson Missouri.

JS Update November 4, 2011

Judy Greene on Legalease

Justice Strategies' Director Judith Greene discusses prison sentencing reform in Arizona with State Representative and House Judiciary Committee member Cecil Ash and Maricopa County Deputy Chief of Probation, Therese Wagner, on Phoenix's legal talk radio show Legalease with Dennis Wilenchik. Sitting in for the host was Jack Wilenchik. The show originally aired October 26, 2011 from 4 to 5 PM (MT) on 1100 AM KFNX.

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News Article The Arizona Republic October 9, 2011

Arizona prison sentences among toughest for many crimes

Whether it's putting a shoplifter behind bars for three years or a child-porn user away for 200 years, Arizona imposes among the longest, harshest sentences of any state in the country for a wide variety of crimes.

Politically, that has been popular, but the practice carries a hefty price tag. This year, the state will spend more than $1 billion to keep prisoners behind bars, and that figure will balloon if Arizona carries out plans to build or contract for as many as 6,500 new prison beds over the next five years.

News Article The Arizona Republic February 2, 2011

Arizona defense lawyers urge sentencing reforms

Defense attorneys on Tuesday called for a raft of sentencing reforms they said would save money and put Arizona in line with other states that have reduced prison populations and lowered crime rates.

But the group likely will have a tough time convincing a majority of lawmakers.

News Article Pheonix New Times February 1, 2011

Arizona Attorneys for Criminal Justice Release New Report on Sentencing Reform

Arizona Attorneys for Criminal Justice (AACJ) held a press conference this morning to announce the release of a report highlighting the need for sentencing reform. The study, conducted by Judith Greene of Justice Strategies, notes that the state's criminal justice policies have "been among the harshest in the nation for many years" -- and are no longer fiscally viable.

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