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Thursday, March 28, 2024

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Pulling back the curtains on wage-theft enforcement in MN; Trump's latest attack is on RFK, Jr; NM LGBTQ+ equality group endorses 2024 'Rock Star' candidates; Michigan's youth justice reforms: Expanded diversion, no fees.

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Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says rebuilding Baltimore's Key Bridge will be challenging and expensive. An Alabama Democrat flips a state legislature seat and former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman dies at 82.

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Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

VA: Criminal Justice

A recent Council on Criminal Justice Report finds homicide has reached 2020 levels (24%) this year, after peaking at 40% in 2021. (Adobe Stock)
Report: VA, US Crime Rates See Post-Pandemic Decline

A recent report finds crime across cities in Virginia and the nation is in sharp decline. The Council for Criminal Justice report tracked crime data …

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According to research from the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, Virginia police estimate there are 31,000 active protective orders on file at any given time in the state. (Adobe Stock)
VA Group Working to Aid Domestic Violence Victims, Survivors

A Virginia group is working to ensure abusers can't use the courts to keep harming their victims. Commonly called "abusive litigation," these come …

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According to research from the Council on Community Justice Task Force on Long Sentences, people serving long sentences make up more than half of the U.S. incarcerated population. (Adobe Stock)
Report: Making Longer Prison Sentences 'More Effective'

A new report outlines ways that states like Virginia could rethink long prison sentences and how to use them more sparingly. The Council on …

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One recommendation made to improve the Virginia Parole Board is to have parole officers take a more active role in discharge procedures.  (Adobe Stock)
New Report Reviews VA Parole Board Duties, Issues

The Virginia Parole Board has issued a report that outlines its past problems and the steps it could take to rebuild public trust. The work began in 2…

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At the United Nations, the United States was one of several nations to vote against a recent global moratorium on using the death penalty. The vote had 125 nations in favor, 37 opposed and 22 abstaining. (Adobe Stock)
Death Penalty Opponents Seek End to Federal Executions

Virginia is the only Southern state to have abolished the death penalty, and there's a new push in the new year to end it nationally as well…

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According to The Sentencing Project, more than one in four kids are detained upon their arrest. (Adobe Stock)
Virginia Bill Proposes Public Health Approach to Juvenile Justice

The Virginia General Assembly has given bipartisan approval to a measure one advocate believes could lead to significant changes to the Commonwealth's…

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According to the American Civil Liberties Union, as of last July, 15 U.S. cities had banned police from using facial-recognition technology. (Adobe Stock)
Virginia Bill Would Expand Police Use of Facial-Recognition Technology

Virginia lawmakers are pursuing a bill which would allow police to use facial-recognition technology in certain cases, a year after the General …

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Virginia has faced several lawsuits over its use of long-term solitary confinement. A class action lawsuit brought by the American Civil Liberties Union alleges the 12 plaintiffs in the case were kept in isolation for periods ranging from two to 24 years. (Adobe Stock)
Bill Would Reduce Solitary Confinement in Virginia Prisons

Solitary confinement has been widely condemned by human-rights activists, and a new bill making its way through the Virginia General Assembly would …

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Public schools need to minimize arrests at schools by using emergency mental-health teams instead of police officers to address behavioral incidents at school, according to a Sentencing Project report. (Adobe stock)
Report: Invest COVID Funds to Close School-to-Prison Pipeline

ARLINGTON, Va. -- As a Northern Virginia school system transitions away from using police officers in schools, a new report suggests COVID stimulus …

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Analyzing body camera footage from more than 100 police officers and 250 audio clips, a new study finds officers spoke to Black men with less warmth, respect and ease compared to white men. (Adobe stock)<br />
New Virginia Research Center to Connect Police, People of Color

PETERSBURG, Va. - As Virginia law enforcement agencies adjust to a number of new policing laws this year, a new state think tank represents the first …

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A new Gallup survey shows more than 60% of Americans say they know
Juneteenth Declared National Holiday, Amidst Progress, Upheaval

RICHMOND, Va. -- Juneteenth National Independence Day is now an official holiday, after President Joe Biden signed a bill Thursday, approved by both …

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Susan Bro started the Heather Heyer Foundation to fight for social justice in honor of her daughter, who died during a 2017 protest against white supremacists. (Ben Rekhi)
Documentary Highlights Hope in Healing Nation’s Divides

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. -- With former President Donald Trump's impeachment trial demonstrating deep divisions in the nation, a new documentary released …

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