New York Daily News: Three strikes but still not out: Inside the Bronx ‘Opioid Court’ where addicts get extra swings at recovery
“Avery McNeil, the alternatives to incarceration specialist at the Bronx Defenders, a nonprofit legal organization, praised OAR for setting up a pathway that allows people to get addiction treatment without first copping to a crime that could stay on their permanent record regardless of their recovery. “That’s really important for our clients who are facing employment,…
New York Daily News: New bail reform laws likely to change the face of Bronx ‘Opioid Court’
“The Bronx HOPE program is currently reserved for people charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance in the seventh-degree. Avery McNeil, the alternatives to incarceration specialist at the Bronx Defenders, a nonprofit legal organization, would like to see HOPE expand so that the program reaches more people. “More of our clients being issues DATs…
Law360: Closing Rikers May Pave New Path For Mentally Ill Inmates
“New York City’s move to close the notorious prison Rikers Island could be an important step in making sure people suffering from mental illnesses, who make up half of America’s incarcerated population of 2.3 million, aren’t lost in the criminal justice system, according to speakers at an event on the problems of mass incarceration… Roberts…
Filter Magazine: What Harm Reductionists Think About Sesame Street’s Addiction Representation
“Dinah Ortiz, a parent advocate supervisor at The Bronx Defenders and a Filter contributor, is concerned that Sesame Street’s focus on the disease model of addiction, and not drug use more generally—which ranges from from abstinence to chaotic and out of control—could add fuel to the fire of child-parent separations that target parents of color. “Sesame Street…
NY1: Advocates Rally to Repeal 50A Law
The Police Commissioner supports making such records public as long as disciplinary hearings are completed and wrongdoing is confirmed. “But we also know that the police officers who have a history of compliant continue to police these communities. They continue to patrol these streets. But, the public has been deprived from getting any information about…
Inside Higher Ed: Documentary to Showcase Education in Prison
Burns moderated a conversation following the preview among Congressman Bobby L. Rush; Novick; Max Kenner, executive director of the Bard Prison Initiative; DeAnna Hoskins, president of advocacy group JustLeadershipUSA; and Wesley Caines, an alum of the initiative and chief of staff at the Bronx Defenders. The conversation ranged from how the film was made, to…
The Appeal: New York Adopted Pretrial Reforms. Its DA Races Will Decide Who Implements Them.
“These elections will decide who implements the new laws, and who lobbies for or against future ones, in some of the state’s most populous upstate jurisdictions, as well as in Queens. “If district attorneys are actively resisting implementing the spirit of the reforms, they can really throw a huge wrench in the process and undermine…
Into the Gloss: The Bronx Defenders
“Beauty allows us to shape our individual stories and find ways to connect to others all at once. With The Top Shelf we discover personal narratives through beauty routines. In The Beauty Politic, Into The Gloss explores how beauty connects communities, and how it informs a sense of self for the people within them. Beauty can be used…
JustLove Radio: Helping People Reenter Society After Involvement with the Justice System
“Wes Caines is the Chief of Staff for The Bronx Defenders, a public defender non-profit serving the people of the Bronx, New York. Wes, who recently addressed the Congressional Black Caucus in Washington D.C. on the work of The Bronx Defenders back in September, talks with us a bit about his work at The Bronx…
The Chief Leader: New Issues in Shift Of 17-Year-Old Inmates
“Under Raise the Age, older adolescents in New York City have better access to age-appropriate services and programs designed to promote rehabilitation, positive behavior change and successful re-entry into the community all while preserving the safety and security of youth and staff and protecting public safety,” he said. But some advocates worried that the influx…
Gay City News: Corrections Unveils Task Force on Trans Inmates
“Other members are joining the task force armed with legal experience representing trans clients in city jails. Deborah Lolai, a criminal defense attorney and LGBTQ crime specialist with the Bronx Defenders, a public defender nonprofit, will use her role on the task force to advocate for the rights of incarcerated trans folks to be housed…
NBC: Could New Bail Reform Law Possibly Endanger Witnesses?
“Advocated for the new bail reform law say it is going to make it fairer for defendants not yet convicted by letting them out on bail and informing them of the evidence and witnesses against them. But district attorneys and police say the new law could put victims and witnesses at risk. The I-Team’s Jonathan…
Vox: Ousman Darboe could be deported any day. His story is a common one for black immigrants.
Ousman Darboe is a 25-year-old undocumented Muslim immigrant, raised in the Bronx since he was six years old. Unfortunately, his journey lays bare what a school to prison to deportation pipeline looks like. Sophia Gurule, his immigration attorney, walked alongside Darboe through his proceedings and said his experiences had “No empathy, compassion, no sense of…
The Appeal Podcast: The War On Drugs Continues In Family Court
“As cannabis use is legalized in more and more jurisdictions across the country, child welfare systems aren’t always keeping pace. Allegations of drug use are still raised in family court, particularly against parents of color, and those who admit using cannabis are often subject to heightened surveillance. We are joined today by Miriam Mack and…
The City: Big Influx of 17-Year-Olds Poses Next ‘Raise The Age’ Test
“Now courts are bracing for a large number of teens, as even more 17-year-olds than 16-year-olds funnel into State Supreme Courts’ new Youth Part for initial hearings on felony charges as well as Family Court, beginning Oct. 1. “My fear is that once they double the number of people… we are going to see even longer arrest-to-arraignment…
Jewish Council for Public Affairs: Criminal Justice Reform NY Conference: End Mass Incarceration
On September 15, 2019, the JCPA Criminal Justice Reform NY Conference convened 225+ people from the diverse Jewish community. The conference sought to engage in a meaningful way to end today’s modern civil rights crisis of mass incarceration. The conference was sponsored by Jewish Council for Public Affairs (JCPA), UJA-Federation of New York and JCRC…
Lohud: New immigration court opens in Manhattan; some attorneys cite lack of transparency
“The opening of these new immigration courtrooms, which was effected with hardly any public notice or transparency, is emblematic of this Administration’s practice to speed the deportation of as many immigrants as possible, as quickly as possible,” said a joint statement from The Legal Aid Society, Brooklyn Defender Services, and The Bronx Defenders, which represent…
DocumentedNY: Early Arrival: City Council Expands Immigrant Unity Project
“The New York City Council has pledged $16.6 million to the New York Family Immigrant Unity Project for fiscal year 2020. It’s the highest budget since the program’s inception in 2014, when it became the first free representation program for detained immigrants in the country. It encompasses the Legal Aid Society, the Bronx Defenders and Brooklyn Defenders Services, and…
Jackson Heights Post: Council Funds Program that Provides Free Legal Counsel to Detained Immigrants Facing Deportation
“The City Council is dedicating $16.6 million of this year’s budget to fund and expand a program that provides free legal council to detained immigrants facing deportation. The New York Immigrant Family Unity Project (NYIFUP) is the country’s first public defender system for detained immigrants facing deportation. The funding for the program’s providers — The…
QNS: City Council fully funds program that provides free legal counsel to immigrants facing deportation
“The City Council is dedicating $16.6 million of this year’s budget to fund and expand the New York Immigrant Family Unity Project (NYIFUP), the nation’s first public defender system for detained immigrants facing deportation. The program is designed to provide free legal representation from providers such as The Legal Aid Society, the Bronx Defenders and…
Syracuse.com: NY’s hard-core traffic fines hit the poor hardest, Syracuse lawmaker says
“The problem is particularly troubling in Syracuse, a city with the nation’s highest rate of concentrated poverty among blacks and Hispanics, Hunter said. The rate of driver’s with suspended licenses for unpaid traffic tickets in one poor neighborhood in Syracuse is more than twice the statewide average, according to the Driven by Justice Coalition, a coalition of criminal…
WBFO: State effort to eliminate driver’s license suspensions gets local support
“According to the Driven by Justice Coalition, over 1.6 million suspensions due to traffic debt were issued to New Yorker’s over a 28-month span. Kennedy said the suspensions are not equitable and poor people are punished for being poor. “Driver’s license suspension rates are nearly nine times higher in the ten poorest communities across New…
NYN Media: New York City Council boosts funding to support immigrants facing deportation
“The New York City Council announced $16.6 million in funding for the New York Immigrant Family Unity Project for this coming fiscal year. The project received a boost of $5 million compared with last year, which will go toward increasing the project’s reach to provide free legal services to immigrants facing deportation. The Bronx Defenders, Legal Aid Society,…
Patch: Corey Johnson And Carlos Menchaca Announce A $16.6 Million Allocation To Fund The New York Immigrant Family Unity Project
“City Council Speaker Corey Johnson and Committee on Immigration Chair Carlos Menchaca announced today that the City Council is dedicating $16.6 million of this year’s budget to fund and expand the New York Immigrant Family Unity Project (NYIFUP), the nation’s first public defender system for detained immigrants facing deportation. NYIFUP, funded by the City Council,…
NY1 Noticias: Ciudad dará más fondos para abogados que defiendan a inmigrantes en proceso de deportación
“Con esta protesta afuera del edificio de las instalaciones de ICE, en el Bajo Manhattan, el Concejo Municipal confirmó que le dará mas fondos al Proyecto de Unidad de Familias Inmigrantes de Nueva York.” Lee el artículo completo aquí