The Tulane First Amendment Law Clinic is taking on our case to win access to public records that the OJJ says it can’t find—or is refusing to provide.
Category: Criminal Justice
Posted inCriminal Justice
How Phase III came to be
Though they once applauded the jail’s ambitious, federally overseen reforms, community groups and political leaders in New Orleans united in opposition to a key mandate stemming from those efforts: the construction of a $109 million mental health jail.
Posted inCriminal Justice
NOPD: Drones just ‘body-worn cameras in the sky’
At a meeting, community members raise questions about the police department’s newest surveillance technology.
Posted inCriminal Justice
The DA’s office wants to use predictive analytics software to direct city resources to ‘places that drive crime.’ Will it work?
Some advocates worry it could lead to increased police presence in already under-resourced areas. But the DA’s office says that the data is only a first step.
Posted inCriminal Justice
Judge Reese gives green light to Phase III construction, says city did what it had to do, by bypassing City Council approval to move capital funds
A federal judge overseeing the jail’s consent decree has ordered the facility be built to provide constitutional medical and mental healthcare for people incarcerated.
Posted inCriminal Justice
Judge temporarily blocks construction of Phase III jail facility
A hearing on Wednesday will look into whether the Cantrell administration violated the city’s charter by allocating capital money to jail without City Council approval
Posted inCriminal Justice
After America Street, let’s work toward solutions.
Last month, three children were killed in a house fire, in a blaze apparently begun by their father. The incident strengthened our resolve to expand local efforts and to tap into more resources to prevent and address family violence. Dr. Trashanda Grayes, who has a doctorate in psychology and human behavior, is the Executive Director […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Jackson Parish holding pre-trial youth in unlicensed juvenile jail
Despite lacking a required DCFS license, Jackson’s detention center is housing kids awaiting adjudication — and collecting roughly $200 a day per kid from surrounding parishes
Posted inCriminal Justice
‘Another step backwards’: $9.5 million private security contract for Louisiana youth prisons raises eyebrows
OJJ pays $75 per hour to staffing company for guards. Critics say that contractor seems to be “enriching themselves on the backs of Louisiana’s teenagers and taxpayers’
Posted inCriminal Justice
‘No Phase III’ still a battlecry
Even as construction begins, the fight continues. Within the jail, monitors find, conditions are worse, due to the same old chronic issues: short staffing, violence, and shoddy mental-healthcare.