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Spring 2015
ONE PRISON
OR
Supervision
Education
Addiction & Mental
Health Treatment
Legal
Services
Housing
Victim
Services
Director’s Message
that meets the needs of people and
communities most affected by crime
and the criminal justice system is being
adopted around the country.
A
s many of you know, the
past year has been a time
of change for PSJ. When
David Rogers announced
that he would be stepping down as
executive director, the board and staff
ensured an orderly transition, securing
the able interim leadership of state
Representative Jennifer Williamson and
initiating a thoughtful and thorough
national search for a new executive
director.
With eight months on the job, I’m as
thrilled to be here as the day I was offered
the position. PSJ was an organization
ahead of its time when I first knew it as
the Western Prison Project more than
a decade ago. Today PSJ’s insistence on
public safety and criminal justice policy
I am also very excited about a boardapproved plan to expand PSJ’s ability
to pursue its policy reform goals. In
November and December of 2014,
we dedicated ourselves to a capacity
assessment that established a roadmap
for PSJ’s future growth. By the end of
spring, we plan to bring on PSJ’s first
Development Director, who will help
us build and diversify our financial
base. We will also finalize a full time
Policy Associate position to build our
already robust advocacy program to
pursue ever expanding opportunities
for reform in Oregon. As we approach
2016, we also hope to bring on a talented
Communications Director to help us get
PSJ’s message out across the state and
nation.
The timing of this expansion of PSJ’s
capacity could not be better. PSJ, its
sister Safety and Justice Action Fund,
and our members are part of a growing
national movement. Powerful groups
like the American Civil Liberties Union
and its network of state affiliates, large
philanthropies like the Ford Foundation
and Open Society Foundations,
surprising right/left coalitions, and
state-level groups across the country
are coming together to call for an end to
mass incarceration and a fundamental
alteration of the way America responds
to crime.
So, as you read through this issue of
Justice Matters, take pride in the work
we have done together over the years,
our daily progress, and what we will
achieve into the future. We truly are at
a watershed moment. From the growing
support for the Justice Reinvestment
Program, to establishing sentencing
alternatives that keep families together,
and our deep collaboration with crime
survivor advocates to increase funding
for lifesaving services, PSJ is more
relevant and better connected today
than at any point in its history. This is our
time, and we are excited to play a major
part in creating a system that finally
guarantees both safety and justice.
Director’s Message2
Organizational Update3
2015 Lobby Day Photo Collage
6
2014 Justice 4 Youth Photo Collage
7
Why I’m Here8
News Briefs9
PSJ’s 2015 Legislative Agenda: Another Step Towards Safety and Justice
13
“Why Do Women Stay?” is the Wrong Question
16
Election 2014 Brings Important Public Safety Reforms
18
Stronger Families Make Safer Communities
19
A Fair Chance for All
20
My Youth Justice Journey: Adrienne Wilson
21
Also Available23
Justice Matters Spring 2015
2
www.safetyandjustice.org
Organizational Update
Lobby Day 2015 was a Fantastic Day!
APSJ’s Lobby Day at the Capitol on
March 16, 2015, was a huge success, with
strong participation from our members
and a warm reception from legislators
and their staff. Our goals for this year’s
legislative session are to ensure that full
implementation of Justice Reinvestment is
a success, that crime victims have resources
to get safe and rebuild their lives, and
that young Oregonians who have been
convicted as adults are able to restart their
lives (see “PSJ’s 2015 Legislative Agenda:
Another Step Towards Safety and Justice”
on page 13 for more information). In a
single afternoon, we had meetings with
41 legislators or their staff and delivered
written materials setting out our legislative
priorities to every representative and
senator in the Capitol building.
Check out page 6 for a photo collage from
the day.
Board and Staff Changes
In July 2014, when
Andy Ko took over
the helm as executive
director (see “Why
I’m Here” on page 8),
we bade a grateful
“see you soon” to state
Representative Jennifer
Williamson for her
outstanding tenure as interim executive
director. We couldn’t say goodbye, because
Jennifer is such a good friend to all of us
here at PSJ, but also because she will still be
a vocal champion for our issues at the state
legislature. Thank you, Jennifer, for the
immense amount of work
you produced in such a
short time. We are forever
in your debt.
At the end of December
2014, PSJ also wished
a fond farewell to
Cassandra Villanueva,
who served as our Director of Organizing
and Advocacy. Cassandra wore many
hats at PSJ through the years in her roles
as volunteer, board member, and staff
organizer. She was an important player
in PSJ’s development. We are grateful for
her dedication, loyalty, and the benefit of
her many talents over the years – and we
expect to hear great things of her work and
evolving career.
Over the coming year, we will establish
new staff positions that emerged from our
comprehensive capacity assessment at the
end of 2014. The results of this assessment,
guided by the wisdom and experience of our
consultant and friend, Lisa
Horowitz, will help meet our
commitment to reforming
Oregon’s public safety and
criminal justice policies and
advance PSJ’s longer-term
strategic vision. The capacity
assessment process repeatedly
highlighted that PSJ must
build its funding base as a necessary first
step toward increasing the reach and
impact of our work. To that end, we are
in the process of hiring a Development
Director and bringing on a talented Policy
Associate (see page 4). We also hope to
have our first Communications Director
in place by 2016. Along with their other
work responsibilities, these new positions
and the work of existing staff will more
directly support and build out PSJ’s
engagement with community partners and
volunteers.
PSJ’s board in April of 2012. He has been
published extensively on issues of racial
justice and has been an invited presenter
at numerous lectures and presentations for
universities and other organizations. He is
a member of the American Political Science
Association, the Organization of American
Historians, the American Historical
Association, and the American Studies
Association. He has served on the boards
of Asian Communities for Reproductive
Justice, Alliance for a Just Society, and the
Edward W. Hazen Foundation. He joined
PSJ’s board in June of 2012. Thank you,
Danny!
Cristal was the field organizer for the
Oregon Student Association’s Oregon
Students of Color Coalition, where
she worked for access to an equitable
education by empowering students.
Cristal was raised in Woodburn and
graduated in 2011 from Western
Oregon University. At WOU she
served on the Executive Boards of
MEChA (Movimiento Estudiantil Chican@
de Aztlán) and Associated Students of
Western Oregon University (student
government). Cristal is passionate about
strengthening communities of color across
the state through the electoral process. She
also joined PSJ’s board in June of 2012.
Thank you, Cristal!
Danny is an assistant
professor of Ethnic
Studies and Political
Science at the University
of Oregon and joined
It
is
also
with
tremendous gratitude,
respect, and fondness
that we said farewell
to long-time board
member and former
chair Paul Solomon in
January 2015. Paul first
joined PSJ’s board in
September 2006 and served as chair from
June 2008 until April 2012. Paul has seen us
through tremendous change and growth,
and helped us in so many ways we can’t
begin to list them. Paul continues to serve as
executive director of Sponsors, Inc., where
he has worked in a variety of capacities for
over 13 years and is the vice-chair of the
3
It is with enormous appreciation that
we thank Cristal Sandoval and Danny
HoSang, who both stepped down from
PSJ’s board in 2014 after
two very productive
years.
Lane County Public Safety Coordinating
Council and chair of Lane County’s ReEntry Task Force. Paul is dedicated to
positive systemic change in the criminal
justice system. He believes strongly in
promoting public safety by removing
barriers to reentry and fostering access to
housing, employment, and education for
people with criminal histories. He is an
advocate for reentry services and smart
public safety policy. Thank you, Paul! We
know you will continue to stay close to PSJ
and our work.
Dana Hepper, who
has been serving on
the board of PSJ’s sister
Safety
and
Justice
Action Fund (SJAF)
since 2012, recently
also joined PSJ’s board.
Dana is the Director
of Policy & Program with the Children’s
Institute, where she has been since 2013.
She previously worked for nine years at
Stand for Children, where her most recent
position was as National Director of
Policy Development. Before that, she was
Stand’s Advocacy Director and played a
leading role in winning several key pieces
of legislation to improve Oregon schools;
she also was a community organizer for
that group. Dana started her career as
an elementary school teacher and pre-K
teacher. She graduated Barnard College
with a BA in Political Science and a minor
in Elementary Education. Dana is a
tremendous asset to both PSJ and SJAF.
Awesome Interns
We’d like to extend our heartfelt gratitude
to the interns who recently completed their
internships.
Jill
Winsor
served
as our Membership
Communications
and
Engagement
Coordinator during the
2013-14 school year
while completing a double Masters in
Public Health and Masters in Social Work at
Portland State University. Not only did Jill
do a masterful job of communicating with
members and helping to organize events,
she also provided outstanding research. Jill
updated and expanded the story collection
protocol for the Member Voices Project.
She provided training to constituents on
the Racial Equity Report Card (RERC). She
presented/work-shopped the RERC to PSJ
members and Upstream Public Health. She
also recruited and facilitated focus groups
for the Towards a Caring Economy national
research project. Jill works with Outside In,
a social service agency that helps homeless
youth and other marginalized people
move toward improved health and selfsufficiency.
Emma DeFontes volunteered
in the PSJ office from July to
September last year. She spent
most of her time in the office
updating
the
information
in PSJ’s Transition Support
Directory, a guide for prisoners
on government and nonprofit
organizations offering various post-prison
transition services in the Oregon-Southern
Washington region. She also volunteered
at the “Justice 4 Youth” summer event,
tabling for PSJ and educating visitors on
PSJ’s petition to the Oregon legislature
requesting change to the state policy of
holding juveniles in adult prisons. Emma
is a senior majoring in history, minoring
in Japanese and Philosophy, at Seattle
University and hails from Tualatin.
Gina Anzaldúa, Policy Intern, conducted
extensive research and authored an indepth report examining pretrial detention
practices for Oregon
youth who are charged
in
adult
criminal
court. During the 2013
legislative session, she
assisted with preparation
for hearings, including
drafting and editing
4
testimony, and assisted with meetings
of the Oregon Coalition for Safety and
Savings (OCSS). She regularly contributed
articles to Justice Matters and also wrote for
Street Roots.
And, in a very exciting turn of events, Gina
was recently hired to work for PSJ as a Policy
Associate. Gina has nine years’ experience
in policy research and fundraising for
nonprofits. She began her career in New
York City with the Center for Employment
Opportunities, a nationally recognized
program that provides job training and
employment services for people with
criminal records. She later spent two years
as a research associate with the Council of
State Governments Justice Center, where
she specialized in prisoner reentry policy.
Following a brief stint in fundraising for an
arboretum and a large nonprofit
health care system, Gina found her
way back to criminal justice work
with PSJ in 2013. Gina left in 2014
to attend Stanford Law School but
soon returned after realizing that
changing the law appeals to her
more than arguing the law. The
legal profession’s loss is PSJ’s gain – and we
are so lucky to have her!
PSJ’s Justice for Youth Event a Huge
Success!
Over 300 people attended our Justice 4
Youth event in September to call for an end
to the prosecution and incarceration of
youth as adults. Our purpose was to raise
awareness of the social and personal harm
caused by policies that inappropriately
cause young people to be punished as
adults.
Our event featured info tables from
community co-sponsors, native drumming
songs, hip-hop performances, poetry
readings from incarcerated youth, a
community healing circle, art exhibit
from LUS youth group, photo booth, and
inspiring guest speakers including:
Justice 4 Youth was sponsored by
Andy Ko, Executive Director, Partnership for Safety and Justice (PSJ)
Cassandra Villanueva, Director of Organizing and Advocacy, (PSJ)
Alex Zhang, Youth Leader, Multnomah Youth Commission (MYC)
Rusty Butler, Youth Prevention Coordinator, Siletz Tribe
Kalpana Krishnamurthy, Board Member, PSJ
Jazmin Roque, Field Organizer, Oregon Student Association
Sharon Gary-Smith, Executive Director, MRG Foundation
Diego Hernandez, Executive Director, Momentum Alliance
Violeta Alvarez, Youth Leader, MYC
Nabu Maza, Student, Lincoln High School
Carlos Herrera, Youth Leader, Momentum Alliance
Galen Harden, Youth Leader, Momentum Alliance
Kerry Naughton, Crime Survivors Program Director, PSJ
Michael Crenshaw, Activist/Lyricist
Zandro Lerma, Activist/Lyricist
Partnership for Safety and Justice in
collaboration with youth leaders from
Momentum Alliance, Multnomah Youth
Commission, and the Oregon Students
Association.
Co-sponsors
included
Oregon Action, OPAL Environmental
Justice, Latino Network, Bus Project
Foundation, Urban League of Portland,
Asian American Network of Oregon
(APANO), NAACP Portland Chapter,
Latino Network, Red Lodge Transition
Services,
MRG
Foundation,
First
Unitarian Church of Portland’s “Ending
the New Jim Crow – Healing our Justice
System,” Oregonians for Alternatives to
the Death Penalty, University of Oregon
Criminal Justice Network, Oregon CURE,
Northwest Behavioral Healthcare Services,
Resolutions Northwest, state Senator Chip
Shields, Portland Commissioner Amanda
Fritz, Urban League of Portland Young
Professionals, Self Enhancement Inc. (SEI),
Youth Rights and Justice, Pathfinders
of Oregon, Center for Intercultural
Organizing, state Representative Jennifer
Williamson, Portland Parent Union,
Portland Women’s Crisis Line, Basic Rights
Oregon, Latinos Unidos Siempre (LUS),
Western States Center, Oregon AFL-CIO,
and the Oregon Justice Resource Center.
Many thanks to our volunteers for making
this event possible and for their dedication
to keeping youth out of the adult criminal
justice system.
Check out a photo collage
from the Justice for Youth
event on page 7.
New Prisoner
Resource Directory
and Transition Guide
Available
PSJ has updated our
Prisoner
Resource
Directory and Transition
Directory. We’ve added
a Table of Contents,
researched to provide the
most up-to-date contact
information for the organizations listed,
and organized the Transition Directory by
topic. These guides are not complete lists of
all of the programs and organizations that
provide support and resources to people in
or leaving prison, and some groups may
only serve certain populations. PSJ no
longer has an active prison program, so
we relied on the hard work of interns who
updated these guides this summer. If you
would like a Prisoner Resource Directory
or Transition Directory, please write to us
at 825 NE 20th Ave, Suite 250, Portland, OR
97232.
Thanks to Everyone Who
Helped Support PSJ through
the Give!Guide!
PSJ was very excited to be
included for the first time in
Willamette Week’s Give!Guide
for 2014 – a special fundraising
opportunity
for
Oregon
nonprofit organizations. The
publication, online donation
portal, and social media
campaigns generated over $3
million of support for worthy
causes between November 5 and
the end of the year. PSJ received
151 individual contributions
totaling $11,252. Adding in
employer matching funds and a
generous $5,000 matching grant
5
from the Unitarian Universalist Veatch
Program at Shelter Rock in New York, we
received $18,677 in seven weeks! Thanks
so much to everyone who helped make our
first experience with the Give!Guide an
outstanding success!
Combined with the extremely generous
end-of-year contributions made directly
to PSJ, we had one of the best donor
fundraising years in our history. We are
grateful for the ongoing support so many
of you have given PSJ over the years. We
commit to using your donations wisely and
energetically to make Oregon a safer and
healthier place for all of us.
Author of “Orange is the New Black”
Comes to Portland!
PSJ was honored to have Piper Kerman
come to Portland to support PSJ in April
2014! The popularity of her memoir,
Orange is the New Black (and the Netflix
TV show based on her book), brought
hundreds of new people to events to learn
about the holistic approach PSJ takes to
criminal justice and public safety reform.
Thank you, Piper, thanks to everyone
who attended, and a special thank you
to everyone who donated their time and
money!
from L-R, Deputy Director Shannon Wight, Board Chair
Rebecca Nickels, Board Member Paul Solomon, Board
Member Lane Borg, Piper Kerman, Board Member Bronson
James, Interim Executive Director Jennifer Williamson
2015 Lobby Day
6
2014 Justice 4 Youth Community Event
7
Why I’m Here
Article by Andy Ko
W
hen the dust settles
following any significant
change in my life – a new
job, a new home, a birth, a death – I
always return to same old questions.
“Why are you here? What are you
going to do now? What then?” I blame
my father, since they are his questions.
I sometimes even “hear” them with his
slight Korean accent. He believed that
we are the sum of our experiences:
that experience determines the choices
we make and, in choosing, we define
ourselves as people. He could be a real
pain. But, more than 20 years after his
death, I still ask his questions.
I left Manhattan with my wife and
daughter in July of 2014, arriving in
Oregon to become Executive Director
of Partnership for Safety and Justice.
Joining PSJ and returning to social
justice advocacy was a homecoming
for me. After law school, I spent eight
years representing homeless families in
NYC. Some of these families (parents,
children, grandparents) sought shelter
together, spending days, or even weeks,
sleeping on blankets and flattened
cardboard boxes in a 24 hour city
welfare office. Other families had
already lost children to the foster care
system. They were trapped between city
bureaucracies: one agency demanding
that they get housing before getting
their kids back, the other requiring
them to already have their children
before offering shelter.
From these families – hundreds of
them – I learned that there is a “system”
that predetermines the range of options
from which we must make the choices
that define us. The system also decides
what happens when we make the wrong
choice, as we all do at times. What the
system then does to us becomes more
(or less) significant based on where we
I am here to help PSJ
help Oregon make
good choices that
enable people – crime
victims, people who
have committed crimes,
their families and
communities – to rebuild
their lives and grow
stronger.
were born, who our parents are, the
color of our skin, our language, whether
we were lucky (or not) at some key
point in our lives, and who within the
system is deciding whether to reward,
punish, or ignore us. The homeless
families I represented often were fleeing
violence or experiencing a catastrophic
illness, a mental health crisis, and/or
addiction. Some had lost a breadwinner
to prison – often for committing an
illegal act to put food on the table and
pay rent. The system squeezed all of
these families until homelessness was
their only option. And then the system
intentionally made what one homeless
services official publically described
as a “bed of nails” for these families
to force them off their blankets and
cardboard mats, back onto the streets.
No one wanted this, not even the
agency that created the bed of nails. But
the system demanded it. It is the same
system that leaves the needs of crime
victims unaddressed, that permanently
bars people who have committed crimes
from reestablishing their lives, and that
narrows its own public safety choices
in ways that make our communities
less safe. It is the same system that
fills our prisons: a system built on fear
and made possible by our collective
8
unwillingness to confront suffering and
choose a solution for which we all are
accountable.
That is one reason – the main reason –
that my decision to return to the Pacific
Northwest was easy. PSJ is a remarkable
organization. It is confronting the
system by seeking solutions that
ensure public safety through shared
responsibility. PSJ recognizes that
accountability necessitates addressing
the needs of crime survivors,
resolving the causes of crime,
and restoring people who
commit crimes to full social,
economic, and political
participation. Our crime
survivor program raises the
voices of crime victims to demand that
public resources be used for more than
filling prison cells. Our engagement
with youth, people of color, and local
communities supports the people most
heavily impacted both by crime and
the criminal justice system. Our goal
is to demand real solutions, not more
of the same get-tough responses that
fail families and damage communities.
PSJ is about ensuring that people have
real options from which to make good
choices.
So, at this point, I can answer at least
one of my father’s questions: “Why are
you here?” I am here to help PSJ help
Oregon make good choices that enable
people – crime victims, people who
have committed crimes, their families
and communities – to rebuild their
lives and grow stronger. I am grateful
for the opportunity and look forward
to continuing this journey.
Andy Ko is PSJ’s executive director.
(A version of this article originally appeared in
Street Roots)
News Briefs
Safety and Sentencing
Barack Obama Commutes Sentences
President Barack Obama commuted the
sentences of nearly two dozen drug offenders
in March 2015, including eight people who
were serving life sentences for offenses such as
distribution of methamphetamine, cocaine,
and heroin. One man, Francis Hayden, was in
the midst of a life sentence for conspiracy to
grow more than 1,000 marijuana plants.
The White House said that changes in federal
drug laws in recent years made many of the
commutations a matter of basic fairness and
justice.
“Had they been sentenced under current laws
and policies, many of these individuals would
have already served their time and paid their
debt to society,” White House counsel Neil
Eggleston wrote in a blog post. “Because
many were convicted under an outdated
sentencing regime, they served years — in
some cases more than a decade — longer
than individuals convicted today of the same
crime.”
Source: Wall Street Journal
Report: Oregon’s Prison Reform is
Working
Oregon is receiving national attention for its
2013 prison reforms that reduced sentences
for some property crimes, allowed some lowrisk inmates to leave prison sooner, and put
more money into community corrections
programs at the county level.
A November 2014 report from the Pew
Charitable Trusts found that one year after
House Bill 3194 became law, Oregon would
save $17 million by July 1 and would be on
track to save $326 million over the next
decade. Most of the savings come from a
reduction in how many prison beds the state
expects it will need in the future, the report
said.
Corrections Director Colette Peters said the
department is satisfied with how well the
reforms have worked.
“We are so pleased with the latest population
projections, which show the lowest growth
we have seen in a forecast in decades,” Peters
said. “This means our efforts to pass public
safety reform are working. With less people
going to prison, we can focus on investing
in those local public safety strategies that are
proven to be effective in preventing crime and
victimization while ensuring safe and secure
prison operations.”
Source: Statesman Journal
Multnomah County to Implement New
Risk Evaluations Before Sentencing
People charged with certain felonies and
facing prison time in Multnomah County
will soon undergo a new risk assessment
before they’re sentenced to see if they would
do better on intense probation rather than
serving time behind bars.
The new program, scheduled to start July 1,
2015, is the county’s answer to House Bill
3194, a legislative initiative aimed at keeping
people out of prison or sending them to prison
for less time to free up money for treatment
and other community-based services.
If successful, the county could reap a
multimillion grant in the 2015-17 biennium
under the state’s Justice Reinvestment
Program. Some have estimated the windfall
could be up to $12 million.
The risk assessments would be done on
people who are in jail after their arraignments
and as they await trial. The evaluations,
recognized nationally as the Level of Service
9
Case Management Inventory, would consider
an accused’s criminal history, education,
employment, family, any alcohol or drug
problems, and mental health needs.
Source: Oregonian
Youth Justice News
“Second-Look” Hearings in
Multnomah County
For the first time in nearly two decades,
Multnomah County District Attorney Rod
Underhill is reversing policy in his office to
allow “second-look”’ hearings for certain
youth offenders accused of Measure 11
offenses who enter pleas to lesser offenses. The
DA’s office has resisted the hearings for more
than a decade. The hearings allow certain
youth offenders to have their sentences
reviewed in court after they’ve served just
over half of their time. A judge can order the
youth to be released under supervision to
serve out the rest of their time.
The change is long overdue, said Shannon
Wight, deputy director of the statewide
advocacy group Partnership for Safety and
Justice.
“Its longstanding internal policy really
discriminated against Multnomah County
youth,” she said. “And, to be clear, the majority
of youth of color in the state are within this
county.’”
Under the new county policy, youths indicted
on the following crimes will be eligible for
second-look hearings: first-degree sexual
abuse, second-degree assault, first-degree
arson, second-degree robbery, and seconddegree kidnapping. The district attorney will
have final discretion on whether to include
a case in the program and will consider the
circumstances of the offense and the victim’s
input, as well.
Source: Oregonian
News Briefs
Portland City Club Report Says Fewer
Youth Should Register as Sex Offenders
The City Club of Portland released a research
report in November 2014 on juvenile sex
offender registration in Oregon. After
interviewing 17 experts and reviewing
almost 50 research reports, the committee
recommends changes that would identify
youth who are most at risk of re-offending
and reduce the number who are placed on the
registry.
“Your committee believes that a narrower
registry focused on individuals deemed
high-risk may prove to be a more effective
tool for society, including law enforcement,
as well as a greater protection for vulnerable
populations,” the report states. “Because the
list will consist of high-risk offenders, the fact
that a person is on the list will be meaningful.”
Oregon is one of just six states that
automatically places child sex offenders on
the adult registry for life unless they can get
a judge to remove their names. Oregon is one
of 38 states that includes youth on the sex
offender registry. About 3,000 of the 25,000
offenders listed on the registry committed
their crimes as youth.
“We studied the growing body of research
on juvenile offenders, as well as literature
on adolescent brain development. We
interviewed witnesses from every part of the
juvenile justice system, as well as treatment
providers, legislators and advocates for
both youth offenders and victims’ rights.
We engaged in passionate debates, which
we believe enrich our conclusions and
recommendations.
“Unequivocally, we find that Oregon’s
registration of young sex offenders
adjudicated in juvenile court is deeply flawed.
Perhaps the greatest flaws are that (1) the
law currently subjects juvenile offenders to
lifetime registration and (2) does so before
offenders receive, and hopefully respond to,
treatment. As we discuss in the Report, these
flaws harm juvenile offenders and the public.”
Spare the Jail?
A lengthy article entitled “Spare the Jail,
Spoil the Child?” (WW-May 7, 2014) was
very critical of Oregon’s (and specifically
Multnomah County’s) juvenile justice system.
PSJ Deputy Director Shannon Wight wrote a
letter to the editor in response in which she
called the piece a “one-sided tribute to the
dying gasps of dinosaurs. Across the country,
states are recognizing the importance of
using research and outcomes to drive our
juvenile justice policies.” She further stated,
“Prosecutors in Oregon see this trend as
undermining their powerful role within our
justice system and are trying to breathe life
into a ‘tough on crime’ belief system that is
becoming increasingly extinct.”
“As we get smarter about our approaches
to criminal and juvenile justice policy,
prosecutors will have less power over the
system and be forced to take their rightful
place as one party in the adversarial process.
The tide is turning, and prosecutors…will
keep swimming upstream until the current
is too strong for them. It’s long overdue
for district attorneys not to just call for
accountability of others—whether it’s youth
who commit crimes or the systems that hold
them accountable—but to be subject to some
oversight themselves.
“Until that happens, rather than listening to
their misleading closing arguments in the case
for sending more youth to jail, remember that
your district attorneys are elected officials and
accountable to you through the ballot box.”
Source: Willamette Week
Crime Survivor News
One in Ten Female Students at U of O
Have Been Raped
One in ten current female students at the
University of Oregon claim they have been
raped while attending college, according to a
new survey of 982 students released Tuesday
by Jennifer Freyd, a professor in the UO’s
Department of Psychology. Equally alarming,
only 14 percent of the rape victims – one
in seven – say they reported the assault to
university officials.
Thirty-five percent of the women surveyed
– and 14 percent of the men – report at least
one sexual experience without their consent
since enrolling at UO. (No first-year students
were included.) Of those who reported
that nonconsensual experience, 73 percent
indicated “knowing their perpetrator.” Those
perpetrators were overwhelmingly (87
percent) male.
“Sexual violence on college campuses is a
national concern,” Scott Coltrane, university
interim president noted, “and properly
addressing this matter is one of our highest
concerns. We anticipate that (this) work will
add to our understanding of the issue, and
the UO will consider the findings from (the)
survey in conjunction with climate assessment
work that the UO plans to undertake as part
of a national effort.”
Source: OregonLive
More Women Killed by Partners than
in 9/11 or Post-9/11 Wars
Feminist icon and activist Gloria Steinem
was quoted in an October 1, 2014, Associated
Press interview saying that “…if you added up
all the women who have been murdered by
their husbands or boyfriends since 9/11, and
then you add up all the Americans who were
killed by 9/11 or in Afghanistan and Iraq,
more women were killed by their husbands or
boyfriends.” Politifact, a feature of the Tampa
Bay Times, investigated the claim and rated it
as true.
Northeastern University research data from
2002 to 2012 indicates the number of women
killed by intimate partners during that period
was 15,462. The number of deaths resulting
from the three events (collapse of the Twin
Towers in NY, plane crash at the Pentagon,
Source: Skanner
10
News Briefs
and plane crash in Shanksville, PA) totaled
2,997. Defense Department statistics count
those killed in Iraq as 4,491 and Afghanistan
as 2,347. Thus the American death toll from
Sept. 11 and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan
is 9,838.
continued a five-year trend of violent crime
reductions. The FBI defines violent crime
as including murder, rape, robbery, and
aggravated assault. The national murder total
last year was 14,196, compared with 14,827 in
2012.
Source: Politifact
The Justice Department’s annual victimization
survey, released in September, found that the
rate of violent crime declined slightly last year
from 26.1 victimizations per 1,000 persons in
2012 to 23.2 per 1,000 in 2013. That report,
which is based on a survey of Americans,
found no statistically significant change
in the rate of serious violent crime (rape
or sexual assault, robbery, and aggravated
assault). The FBI reported a national arrest
total was 11.3 million, including 1.5 million
for drug offenses, the largest sub-category.
Both numbers were down from 2012, when
there were 12.2 million arrests, including 1.6
million drug arrests.
Women Prisoners in Wilsonville
Complete College Domestic Violence
Course
Nine inmates at the Oregon prison for women
in Wilsonville, accompanied by 20 Portland
State University students, completed a 10week class on domestic violence inside the
lockup’s walls in June.
The course focused on causes, frequency,
dynamics, and the consequences of domestic
violence, and examined the culture of violence
and the roles of power and inequality, the
Oregon Department of Corrections reported.
“The Inside Out program allowed PSU
students to attend the class inside the
institution with the nine incarcerated
students,” corrections officials wrote in a news
release. “Although the women in custody did
not receive college credits for the course, they
received a certificate of completion that can be
turned in for credit at PSU after their release.”
The class took place at Coffee Creek
Correctional Facility, the state’s only prison
for women. The grounds also house the state’s
intake center, which takes in and evaluates all
prisoners – male or female – committed to
state prisons.
Source: Oregonian
Violent, Property Crime Reports
Down, FBI Says
Violent crimes reported to local law
enforcement dropped 4.4 percent in 2013,
while property crimes fell 4.1 percent, the FBI
reported today in its annual Uniform Crime
Report for the year. The FBI compilation
Source: Crime Report
Prison-Related News
Oregon Prison Opens Special Veterans
Housing Unit
Oregon’s Snake River Correctional Institution
(SRCI) is now offering the state’s first veteransonly housing block. SRCI has set aside 72
beds for the special veterans housing. Veteran
prisoners have to meet certain criteria to be
placed in the unit. The DOC hopes the unit
will enhance inmate behavior and well-being
by giving veterans an opportunity to interact
with like-minded, like-experienced inmates.
Source: KPTV
Oregon Prisoners Who Take Parenting
Class Less Likely to be Rearrested
A parenting program in Oregon’s prisons
appears to make prisoners less likely to
commit new crimes after they leave prison,
a long-term study shows. The Oregon DOC,
11
working with two nonprofit groups, has spent
the last 11 years trying to find ways to stop
the generational cycle of crime that pervades
many families.
They focused on parenting classes that they
hoped would draw incarcerated parents
closer to their kids and give them the skills to
help prevent their progeny from making the
same mistakes they did. Corrections officials
teamed with the Oregon Social Learning
Center, which developed curriculum, and
Pathfinders of Oregon, which taught classes
in a program called Parenting Inside Out.
A five-year, $2.1 million study of the program
looked at how 359 moms and dads performed
one year after leaving prison. A research
team divided the prisoners into a group that
completed Parenting Inside Out training
and a control group that received little or
no parenting training behind bars. The
study found that after one year, women who
participated in the program were 59 percent
less likely and men in the program were 27
percent less likely than the control group to be
rearrested.
Source: Oregon
Columbia River Correctional
Institution Readies Men for Release
A steel pillar rises from a concrete walk inside
the gates of Columbia River Correctional
Institution. It’s stamped with these words:
“On the road to recovery.” Most of the inmates
entering the minimum-security prison in
Northeast Portland have been sentenced to
short prison terms or are working off the final
years of long ones. When they leave, they pass
the pillar again.
“Get real, get responsible, get it right,” it reads.
“One day at a time.”
If that sounds like an Alcoholics Anonymous
slogan, it is. The bulk of prisoners who
pass the pillar suffer from drug or alcohol
problems. Much of the training and therapy
inside is designed to stop the flawed behavior
News Briefs
that got them there.
One of the most sought-after programs
in the prison is known as AIP, Alternative
Incarceration Program, which cuts an average
of about a year off their sentences. Much of
the course is group therapy designed to help
the men examine their thinking errors and
hold them accountable for their crimes. They
set long-term goals and undergo drug and
alcohol treatment.
Many will transition into group housing
outside the prison before they are freed.
amount of time, according to Stanford’s
analysis.
“You cannot find another group of prisoners
who have been released from almost
anywhere that have had such a low recidivism
rate,” said Michael Romano, who heads
the Three Strikes Project and helped write
Prop. 36. “I think it really does prove that
these sentences were just not effective law
enforcement policy.”
More than 65 government, business, and
nonprofit representatives attended the
summit, including state Rep. Andy Olson
(R-Albany), the Oregon Department of
Corrections, Clackamas County Department
of Employee Services, and nonprofits
that include the Meyer Memorial Trust,
Northwest Family Services, Mercy Corps
Northwest, and Central City Concern.
Source: San Francisco Chronicle
Source: Oregonian
Portland Mayor Proposes Tax Credit
for Companies that Hire Former
Felons
Source: Oregonian
In his January “State of the City” address,
Portland Mayor Charlie Hales announced
the city will begin offering businesses a tax
credit of up to $5,000 for every formerly
incarcerated person they hire.
Re-Entry News
Former Inmates Released under Prop.
36 Doing Well
Web developer Eddie Griffin just finished an
internship at a tech company and is on the
hunt for a new position. But his background
sets him apart from many of Silicon Valley’s
programmers. Just over a year ago, the
58-year-old Richmond resident was in San
Quentin State Prison, serving the 13th year
of a 27-to-life prison sentence. He was given
a second chance under Proposition 36, the
2012 measure that reformed the state’s “three
strikes and you’re out” law, and appears to be
making the most of it.
While Griffin’s story is unique, Prop. 36
proponents say it’s emblematic of a wider
trend of inmates released under the law
faring well, despite arguments that the repeat
offenders would be dangerous. More than
1,900 prisoners have been released under
Prop. 36, with the average person out for a
little over a year, according to Stanford Law
School’s Three Strikes Project. Just 3.5 percent
have returned to prison for committing a new
crime, state data reviewed by the group shows.
That’s roughly 10 times lower than the rate for
all California prisoners released for a similar
of providing second chances to employees.
Dave’s Killer Bread Leads Second
Chance Summit
“Will this be expensive?” Hales asked. “Let
me turn that around: How will it compare
with the billions of dollars we spend a year as
a country on prisons? No contest. It’s a good
investment.”
A partnership of public leaders – including
businesspeople, politicians, and prison
officials – held a convening in Portland in
October to find ways to put more ex-convicts
to work.
The Second Chance Summit, hosted by Dave’s
Killer Bread, was an invitation-only affair that
reviewed current trends in the post-prison
workforce and took testimonials from people
with criminal backgrounds who thrived after
incarceration.
One in three bakery employees at Dave’s Killer
Bread have criminal backgrounds but have
found living wages at the company, according
to a company publicist. Chief executive
officer John Tucker, who joined the company
in 2013, has embraced the company’s legacy
12
In February, on the OPB radio program
Think Out Loud, Hales told OPB it would
cost $500,000 to run a pilot program for
100 businesses. During his “State of the
City” speech, Hales cited a policy decision
last year to ban the box on city applications
asking applicants if they’ve been convicted of
a crime. “I think we’ve had some pretty good
success in our maintenance bureau,” Hales
told OPB, referencing the finding of formerly
incarcerated individuals for potential hires.
Source: Willamette Week, Oregonian, OPB
PSJ’s 2015 Legislative Agenda:
Another Step towards Safety and Justice
Article by Shannon Wight and Kerry
Naughton
B
eginning February 2 and closing
sometime in late June or early July,
the 2015 state legislative session
already has been full of policy debates,
budget negotiations, and political
wrangling. And all of this is happening
in a legislature where 20 percent of
legislators were elected to their seat for
the first time in 2014, Democrats hold
the governor’s office and a majority in
both the House and Senate, and Oregon
had an unexpected gubernatorial
transition the third week of session.
It’s an exciting time to advocate for
public safety reform in Oregon.
Our legislative agenda reflects PSJ’s
commitment to dramatically changing
the way Oregon does business when it
comes to public safety. During the 2013
session, we helped pass HB 3194, which
signaled a major shift in how Oregon
prioritizes its public safety spending. As
a result of these reforms, called “justice
reinvestment,” our state is no longer on
track to build the new prison at Junction
City at a cost in excess of $350 million.
Instead, millions will be invested locally
into programs that help prevent crime
and reduce recidivism. But this will
only happen if we stay committed to
justice reinvestment’s success and hold
decision-makers accountable to the
same.
Similarly, our advocacy for increased
funding for victim services led to
doubling the size of the Oregon Domestic
and Sexual Violence Services Fund in
2013. Unfortunately, that increase still
left a huge number of victims without
the help they need.
Finally, PSJ remains committed to
changing the way youth are tried as
adults in Oregon under Measure 11.
As PSJ members and Justice Matters
readers know, the lack of youth justice
2015 - 17 OREGON LEGISLATURE
18 Democrats & 12 Republicans in Senate
35 Democrats & 25 Republicans in House
18 legislators were elected to their seat for the first time
reforms in the 2013 session was a major
disappointment to all of us.
The strides we made in 2013 – and the
ones we didn’t – have only fueled our
commitment to long-term reform in
Oregon. Our 2015 legislative agenda
reflects that commitment.
PSJ’s goals for the 2015 legislative session
are to:
1. Prioritize justice reinvestment’s
success
2. Increase access to victim
services
3. Promote justice for Oregon’s
youth
Prioritize Justice Reinvestment’s Success
Ensure $58.5 million in justice
reinvestment funding for the 2015-17
budget cycle and engage legislators in the
program’s success
13
In 2013, PSJ members, staff, board, and
allies worked hard to create a course
correction for Oregon’s public safety
system. HB 3194, also called justice
reinvestment, established a more
effective and less costly way to keep
Oregonians safe. Because of HB 3194,
Oregon won’t need to build or bond for
a new prison for at least the next five
years. This is estimated to save $300
million during that same time period.
This funding will be reinvested in
communities to keep Oregonians safe
and help people rebuild their lives after
crime.
Passing HB 3194 was an important
step, but only the first one in a multiyear process to rebalance how Oregon
prioritizes its spending. PSJ strongly
supported HB 3194 and its justice
reinvestment principles because they
are consistent with the values we have
long held: to promote safe, healthy
communities by reducing our reliance
on incarceration and investing in
services for both people who commit
crime and victims of crime so they can
rebuild their lives.
mental health treatment, victim services,
and re-entry support for people released
from prisons and jails.
FAMILY SENTENCING ALTERNATIVE
PSJ is supporting an exciting sentencing
alternative bill being sponsored by
Representatives Williamson and Olson
this session, HB 3503: the Strong Families
– Safe Communities Act. HB 3503 would
hold parents who have committed crimes
accountable while strengthening their bond
to their children and increasing the stability
of their families. HB 3503 would establish a
Family Sentencing Alternative, allowing
parents convicted of certain nonviolent
offenses to be held accountable in the
community under intensive supervision,
while receiving appropriate services and
remaining united with their children.
HB 3194 means millions reinvested in
alternatives to prison with 10 percent
allocated specifically for communitybased victim services.
Justice reinvestment will only be
successful if elected officials and the
public continue their commitment
to rebalancing Oregon’s public safety
system and can defend against attacks
on HB 3194. Instead of spending more
and more money on the prison budget,
Oregon needs to strongly invest in its
36 counties so that they can develop
programs to prevent crime and keep
people out of state prisons. These
essential, and currently underfunded,
local programs include addiction and
Legislators won’t
decide how justice
reinvestment
funds are allocated
in the counties –
that’s up to local
public
officials.
But legislators still
play an important
role. They create
the state budget
and
determine
how much justice
reinvestment
funding
is
available.
PSJ is advocating
for
Oregon’s
2015-17
budget
to include $58.5
million for justice
reinvestment. This
amount is based
on projections of
the costs Oregon
avoided under HB
3194 because we
don’t need to open
the prison at Deer Ridge or build a new
prison in Junction City.
justice reinvestment. PSJ organized
members of the Oregon Coalition for
Safety and Savings – including business
associations, child advocates, and
others – and victim advocates to testify
in support of full funding for justice
reinvestment. We also hosted a briefing
on justice reinvestment for legislators
and staff. PSJ members met with their
legislators on our Advocacy Day in
March and gave first-hand examples of
why justice reinvestment is so important
to the safety and success of us all. Because
of the briefing and advocacy day, we’re
starting to see increased interest in
justice reinvestment. This is key because
legislators have a number of high-profile
issues to debate this session. We’ll
continue to advocate that legislators
prioritize justice reinvestment’s success.
Increase Access to Victim Services
Increase the Oregon Domestic and Sexual
Violence Services Fund to $10 million
At this point, the co-chairs of the Ways
and Means Committee (the committee
that creates Oregon’s budget) have
allocated only $20 million for justice
reinvestment. This is just the starting
point, but $20 million is nowhere near
the funding that Oregon needs to make
this program a success.
PSJ members know that domestic and
sexual violence services are vital to
the health and safety of individuals,
families, and communities across
Oregon. PSJ members also know that
such services are critically under-funded
in Oregon. Because of HB 3194, the
Oregon Domestic and Sexual Violence
Services Fund (ODSVS) was doubled in
the 2013-15 budget cycle, but it is still
only about 25 percent of what is needed
to provide minimal, core emergency
services to domestic and sexual violence
survivors. This is a clear example of how
Oregon’s public safety structure falls
short and has devastating consequences
for Oregonians in need.
PSJ members, board, staff, and allies
have been generating a lot of support to
increase justice reinvestment funding.
During the second week of session,
the Public Safety Subcommittee of
Ways and Means heard testimony on
In 2013, there were almost 12,000
requests for emergency shelter from
violence that couldn’t be met. That’s
more than one unmet request every
hour of every day of that entire year.
Nearly half of these requests came from
14
victims who were also seeking safety for
their minor children. Survivors of color
and survivors who don’t speak English
often have more barriers to accessing
services.
We don’t know what happens to every
Oregonian who is unable to access
services. But we do know the difficult
safety decisions that too many survivors
have to make. For some women and
children in the Portland metro region,
riding the MAX line as long as they can
or sleeping at the airport are their safest
options. In rural areas, a victim may
have to sleep in her car, hitchhike to the
closest town, or camp at the beach or in
the woods. We can only guess how many
of the almost 12,000 unmet requests for
shelter left victims with no choice but
to return to a violent home – and bring
their children back with them.
The support that survivors and their
children receive through communitybased domestic and sexual violence
services is critically important because
so many of these survivors don’t report
the violence to law enforcement. There
are many reasons why survivors choose
not to report. One that we hear often
is that the survivor wants the violence
to stop, but doesn’t want the abusive
partner to go to jail or prison under a
mandatory sentence. Survivors of color
may have had negative interactions
with law enforcement and are reluctant
to turn to the police for help. Many
survivors are shut out from the system
that is supposed to help them. Survivors
turn to community-based services
because advocates listen to their needs,
don’t judge their decisions, and help
survivors get safe and rebuild their lives.
We know that Oregon can do more
to meet victims’ needs. Increasing
ODSVS to $10 million won’t fully fund
services, but it will provide many more
Oregonians with the safety and support
services they need and deserve.
Promote Justice for Oregon’s Youth
Promote the goals of the Earned Review
Workgroup
WHAT’S A “SUPER-MAJORITY VOTE” AND WHY
DOES MEASURE 11 REFORM REQUIRE IT?
When Ballot Measure 11 passed in 1994, creating mandatory
minimum sentences for youth as young as 15, as well as adults,
Oregon voters also passed Ballot Measure 10. Measure 10 says
that if the legislature wants to decrease a criminal sentence
imposed by voters, they must have a two-thirds (super-majority)
vote to do so. Most legislative votes just require 50 percent of
legislators plus one more to vote in favor of a bill to pass it. The
requirements of Measure 10 make changing Measure 11 very
difficult.
15
Our disappointment in the fact that no
youth justice reforms were included in
HB 3194 was somewhat mitigated by
the provision within the bill that the
issue should be considered for future
legislation. The bill stated that a newly
created public safety task force shall
(among other things):
“Consider the policy implications
of establishing an earned,
conditional release hearing for
juvenile offenders convicted under
ORS 137.707.”
Translated, that means they will
consider an earned review or “second
look” hearing for youth convicted under
Measure 11. We don’t know if legislation
has a chance of passing this session
or not. Representative Andy Olson of
Albany leads a workgroup on this issue,
which is trying diligently to identify a
policy that can pass the legislature with
the required super-majority vote (see
box at right).
This session, PSJ is supporting the goals
of Representative Olson’s workgroup
while developing a public education
campaign outside of the Capitol to
help build momentum for youth justice
reforms.
At PSJ, our 2015 legislative agenda
reminds us of an important truth about
policy change: it’s a slow process, but
quitting won’t speed it up. We hope
you’re as excited as we are to continue to
advocate for these important changes! It
is up to all of us to see this through.
Shannon Wight is PSJ’s deputy director
and Kerry Naughton is our crime
survivors’ program director.
“Why Do Women Stay?”
is the Wrong Question
Article by Denise Welch and
Heather McDowell
A
s regular readers of Justice
Matters know, Partnership for
Safety and Justice works with
survivors of crime and others impacted
by the criminal justice system to
advocate for policies that make Oregon’s
public safety structure more effective
and more just. To that end, one of our
ongoing priorities has been to educate
the public about domestic violence and
the critical need for more funding for
crime survivors.
The media has shone a huge spotlight
on the issue of domestic violence lately
because of the involvement of a highprofile NFL football player. I don’t need
to go into the details of the individual
case; I’m sure most of you have read or
watched the coverage and are familiar
with what’s been reported. This case has
brought many strong responses from a
wide variety of corners, including the
frequently asked question, “Why do
women stay?”
The simplicity and tenor of this question
implies that a person experiencing
domestic violence just needs to leave.
It also implies that when a person,
most often a woman, is experiencing
domestic violence it is
up to her solve the
problem. What we’ve
seen less discussion
…we think a more
accurate question is:
“Why is the abusive
person being abusive?
I tried to leave the
house once after an
abusive episode, and
he blocked me. He
slept in front of the
door that entire night.
of, and what we think is a more
accurate question, is: “Why is the
abusive person being abusive?” It is
the abusive person who is causing the
issue. The person being abused is not
responsible for the abusive person’s
behavior.
Despite all of the collective efforts
to educate people about “victimblaming,” it is still a common response
when someone has been the victim of
domestic or sexual violence. We don’t
ask why someone who was mugged on
the street handed over his wallet. We
don’t ask why the victim of a road rage
incident was driving to work that day.
So why do some people unfairly expect
survivors of domestic violence to
control a violent situation that someone
else has created?
The issue of staying or leaving an abusive
relationship is much more complicated
than the question “Why do women
stay?” suggests. Someone started
the Twitter hashtags “#WhyIStayed”
and “#WhyILeft,” – which resulted
in powerful tweets illustrating how
difficult it is to make the decision
to stay in or leave an abusive
relationship. The tweets included,
“If I can’t have you, NO ONE will
have you,” and, “I tried to leave
the house once after an
abusive episode, and
he blocked me. He
slept in front of the
door that entire night.”
16
These responses shed a different light
on the question, don’t they?
In fact, leaving an abusive relationship
often exacerbates the problem. Our
friends at the Oregon Coalition
Against Domestic & Sexual Violence
(OCADSV) pointed out in a recent
Oregonian article: “We know that the
danger to a victim increases by 70
percent if she attempts to leave.
An abuser will escalate the
use of violence when they lose
control. Sadly, a majority of
homicides occur when someone
has left or gets ready to leave an abusive
relationship. That’s why we have built
a safety network across Oregon and
the nation. Personal protection at that
point in the relationship is critical.”
Another case involving an NFL
player has brought the issue of child
abuse and neglect into the spotlight.
Again, the details of this case are not
worth repeating, but it highlights an
important issue: children are all too
often victims of violence. Support for
crime survivors includes support for
children directly and indirectly affected
by crime.
The state Department of Human
Services (DHS) reported that in 2013
there were 10,630 child victims of abuse
and neglect in Oregon. DHS reports
that family stress factors that can lead
to child abuse and neglect include
alcohol and drug issues, domestic
violence, and financial distress. When
Oregon supports crime survivors and
has an effective and just public safety
structure, stress factors for families are
reduced and children and families are
healthier and safer.
Children’s Trust Fund of Oregon
highlights the many costs of child
abuse and neglect. One of those costs is
that children who have been abused or
neglected are 11 times more likely to be
“Why Do Women Stay?”
is the Wrong Question
arrested for criminal behavior as
juveniles. Investing more in children
and families also could have saved
Oregon some of the $2.5 billion it paid
for the care of victims of child abuse
and neglect in 2011.
Domestic violence affects more than
the victims and children being directly
harmed by an abusive person. Domestic
violence affects all of the communities
in which we live. Safety from domestic
violence would save Oregonians more
than $35 million per year in health care
costs, reduce one-third of child welfare
cases in Oregon, save $9.3 million
in annual lost earnings, and prevent
a leading cause of homelessness for
women and children. Meeting the
needs of all crime survivors including
children promotes safe and healthy
communities, families, and children.
PSJ agrees that it’s vital for victims
to access safety and support. That’s
why we’ve worked with OCADSV,
survivors, and victim advocates to
increase the Oregon Domestic and
Sexual Violence Services
Fund (ODSVS). ODSVS
funds emergency shelter,
expert safety planning,
counseling, and other
support services to
victims fleeing domestic
and sexual violence in
every county across
the state. PSJ was
instrumental in helping
to double ODSVS in the
2013 legislative session.
However, ODSVS is
still only about a quarter
of what a 2006 study by
the state Departments of
Justice and Human Services
said was needed to meet the
demand for emergency shelter
and services. In 2013, domestic
violence victims made almost 12,000
requests for emergency shelter that
could not be met.
If there is anything positive to come
from the deluge of media coverage
about these NFL players and their
families’ tragic situations, we hope it is
a more robust discussion of the issues
of domestic violence and child abuse
and neglect, and greater support for
survivors. We also hope that it leads to
a discussion about healthy relationships
and preventing violence. What if we
could reduce the need for survivor
programs by educating men and
women about what it means and looks
like to be in a healthy relationship?
Instead of blaming victims, let’s remove
systemic barriers and make sure that
everyone can get safe and live free from
violence.
(This article originally appeared in Street
Roots.)
Denise Welch is PSJ’s communications
and development associate and Heather
McDowell is our policy and advocacy
intern.
VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN ACT
September 13, 2014 commemorated the 20th anniversary of the
Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). Recognizing that the nation
needed to respond to violence against women, this landmark
legislation was passed in 1994. VAWA provides funding for needed
services for survivors. Since VAWA passed, violence against women
in the US has declined by 67% (National Network to end Domestic
Violence, 2014).
VAWA has to periodically be reauthorized by Congress. In 2013, VAWA
was expanded to help underserved survivors, including:
Sexual assault survivors on college campuses
Native American survivors
LGBT survivors
Immigrant survivors
17
Election 2014 Brings Important
Public Safety Reforms
Article by Denise Welch
T
he 2014 General Election resulted
in what some are calling “historic”
reform to advance a public safety
strategy that may spell the beginning of
the end of the “War on Drugs.”
California Proposition 47 – Safe
Neighborhoods and Schools Act
In perhaps the most significant public
safety reform measure to be passed in
decades, California voters approved
Prop. 47 by a vote of 58.5 percent for to
41.5 percent against. Under the new law,
low-level property and drug offenses
including shoplifting, theft, and check
fraud under $950, as well as personal
illicit drug use, will be reclassified from
felonies to misdemeanors. Because the
law will apply retroactively, as many as
10,000 people convicted of these offenses
may now be eligible to petition for early
release and, by some estimates, state
courts will hand out roughly 40,000 fewer
felony convictions each year.
As stipulated by the law, the estimated
$150 million in state savings will be used
to support school truancy and dropout
prevention, victim services, mental health
and drug abuse treatment, and other
programs designed to expand alternatives
to incarceration.
Oregon Measure 91 – Regulation,
Legalization, and Taxation
of Marijuana
Oregon voters approved Measure 91 with
56 percent voting “yes.” The law goes into
effect on July 1, 2015.
PSJ urged a yes vote on Measure 91. We
believe that no one should go to jail for
marijuana and that Oregon’s previous
marijuana policy wasted law enforcement
dollars,
eliminated
employment
opportunities and access to housing, and
often resulted in the unfair treatment of
young people and people of color. Too
many tax dollars were wasted without
increasing public safety. Too many public
resources were diverted that should have
been used to help crime victims and
address unmet community needs across
Oregon.
PSJ advocates for policies that make
Oregon’s approach to public safety more
effective and more just. We believed
it was time to stop pretending that
criminalizing people for marijuana was
helping anyone and to start addressing
marijuana realistically as a health,
education, and economic issue. We think
Measure 91 will do just that.
Measure 91 will replace our failed
approach of treating marijuana use as
a crime with a strict system of legal
regulation and taxation – and only for
adults 21 and over. This will make a
real, positive difference for Oregon and
Oregonians. The measure was supported
by a broad coalition of newspapers, civic
groups, labor groups, public safety and
criminal justice groups, racial justice
groups, and environmental groups.
More Good News on the
“War on Drugs”
Oregon joins Washington and Colorado,
and now Alaska and Washington, D.C., as
places where voters have rejected tough
marijuana laws. There is speculation
that the War on Drugs, which has raged
on for over 40 years now, appears to be
slowly but surely dying of natural causes.
Remember the “This is Your Brain on
Drugs” public service announcement
of the 1980s? Ronald Reagan declared
marijuana “probably the most dangerous
drug in America.” And everyone believed
him. Why? Through misinformation and
propaganda and the fact that, without the
internet, people had no way to research
18
the issue for themselves.
But the War on Drugs also caused the U.S.
prison population to explode, gobbling
up any money that might be used for drug
treatment and other services. During this
same time, medical researchers were
discovering that marijuana was effective
in treating such diseases as glaucoma
and in easing the pain and nausea of
cancer treatments. Marijuana use became
common among AIDS patients, helping
to lead to passage of the nation’s first
medical marijuana law in California in
1996.
It was, in fact, the increased passage of
medical marijuana laws that started to
change the conversation about marijuana.
People started visualizing marijuana
users differently. Instead of the image of
a clueless stoner, we started seeing our
parents and grandparents with cancer
and thinking about easing their suffering.
Oregon, Washington, and Alaska
followed California two years later; today,
23 states have medical marijuana laws.
As of this writing, at least five other states
are expecting to put marijuana regulation
measures before voters in 2016.
Disappointing News
Measure 88 – Safer Roads, unfortunately
was defeated with a 66 percent “no” vote.
PSJ had urged a yes vote on Measure
88. We believed that Measure 88 was a
common sense step to keep our roads
and communities safe. Thousands of
undocumented immigrants and their
families live, work, and contribute to
the economic and social well-being
of Oregon. We wanted to be sure that
they were trained, tested, and insured
like other drivers in our state. Sadly, the
measure failed.
Denise Welch is PSJ’s communications and
development associate
Stronger Families
Make Safer Communities
Article by Shannon
Elizabeth Hilliard
Wight
and
O
regon has recently committed
to an exciting new path to
improve its public safety
system. The Justice Reinvestment Act
started this path in 2013 and flatlined
prison growth for the next five years.
The Act has thus far proven successful,
saving the state an estimated $300
million in averted costs from opening
and building new prisons. Women,
however, have been less impacted
by the reforms than men and remain
the fastest-growing segment of our
prison population.
Women who commit crimes must be
held accountable, but in a way that
is safe for communities and costeffective. Currently, this neglected
segment of our criminal justice
population is causing a potential
fiscal and safety crisis for the
Department of Corrections.
Oregon’s only women’s prison
is 75 beds away from maximum
capacity, and corrections officials
are now considering re-opening a
unit at the Oregon State Penitentiary to
house additional women.
There are ramifications far greater than
fiscal costs when we send women to
prison. Women are often the primary
caregivers for their children, and their
incarceration can cause damage that
lasts generations. Oregon now has an
opportunity to pass reforms focused on
parents with custody of their children so
that we can build stronger families and
safer communities while still holding
parents accountable.
Rep. Jennifer Williamson, D-Portland,
is bringing a bill this legislative session
that would allow parents convicted
of certain nonviolent crimes to serve
their sentences at home under intensive
supervision with parenting and other
life skills training. By enacting this
smart public safety policy, we can reduce
the pressure on the women’s prison and
avoid the cost of opening another unit.
Initiating a program that holds parents
accountable, strengthens parenting
skills, and keeps them connected to their
children gives these children greater
opportunities to succeed. By keeping
families together, Oregon can break
the cycle of crime and increase public
safety with stronger families and safer
communities.
Washington State implemented a
similar program in 2010 to reduce
risks to children and families while also
addressing concerns about increasing
prison costs. By allowing parents
convicted of certain nonviolent offenses
to serve sentences under intensive
community supervision instead of in
prison, the Family Offender Sentencing
Alternative (FOSA) program focuses
on the entire family’s well-being. This
program costs one-third of the cost of
sending a parent to prison. Early analysis
of the program indicates that participants
are less likely to commit future crimes
after completion. This alternative
provides parents the opportunity to
improve not only their own lives, but
the lives of their children and the overall
well-being of the community.
19
Children with a parent who is, or
has been, in prison are more likely
to face time in prison themselves. In
addition to getting pulled into the
cycle of crime, children of incarcerated
parents face challenges in other areas
of their lives. The departure, and later
return, of a parent can severely disrupt
a child’s emotional and educational
development. Studies show that
children of incarcerated parents exhibit
symptoms of post-traumatic stress
disorder similar to those suffered
by children whose parents have
died. These psychological and
developmental harms extend years
beyond the time children’s parents
are behind bars.
Often, children whose parents are
sent to prison do not have family
members who can take them in. With
nowhere else to go, these children are
placed in foster care. A move to foster
care frequently involves a change in
home and can mean a loss of friends,
teachers, and established support
systems. Being abruptly placed in new
surroundings is a challenge for any
young child. For a child already facing
the loss of a parent, however, these
changes can be devastating.
When appropriate, allowing a parent to
serve all or part of his or her sentence
under intensive supervision at home
protects children from serious distress.
Not only are these children spared the
hardship of their parent’s absence, but
the parents are placed into programs
that improve their parenting skills and
provide them the tools to rebuild their
families.
(A version of this article originally
appeared in Street Roots)
Shannon Wight is the deputy director of
Partnership for Safety and Justice. Elizabeth
Hilliard is PSJ’s policy intern.
A Fair Chance for All
D
o you believe that everyone should
have a fair chance to get a good
job? Have you or someone you
know faced job discrimination because
of a previous conviction or arrest? The
Oregon AFL-CIO, Oregon Action, and the
Urban League of Portland have teamed up
to advocate for an ordinance in the City of
Portland: “A Fair Chance for All – Reduce
Barriers: Ban the Box.”
The Facts
More than 32,000 people in Oregon are
currently incarcerated or on community
supervision
and
consequently
face
employment discrimination. Employers
frequently will not hire people with previous
convictions. Even as the economy is
improving, it is still difficult for people with
records to find work. Research confirms that
a criminal record reduces the likelihood
of a job callback by nearly 50 percent.
It would:
Allow applicants to explain their
previous convictions at the interview
stage, if they have been deemed
otherwise qualified for the job;
Require employers to only deny
applicants based on their criminal
histories IF the employer determines
that there is a direct relationship
between a job and an applicant’s
criminal history; and
Clear employers of liability for future
damage or loss caused by employees
with criminal records, to encourage
employers to feel comfortable giving
such applicants a chance.
It would not:
Prevent employers from asking for a
criminal background check; or
Override any law that mandates
people with certain convictions from
working in particular occupations
(childcare, care of the elderly,
financial services, etc.)
Blanket exclusions on job applications
for people with previous convictions can
lead to homelessness and future crime.
Employment is the most effective tool to
reduce recidivism (returning to prison),
resulting in a safer community and a lower
cost to taxpayers.
Removing Barriers
The goal is to reduce the number of barriers
that stand between people with records and
jobs that bring the promise of a sustainable
future.
The objective is to “ban the box” – the
section of employment applications
where applicants must disclose arrests or
convictions. A recent study found that 65
percent of women and 83 percent of men
with felonies on their record rely on family
members for financial support. By removing
this barrier to employment, thousands
of Oregonians who want to support their
families can be on more equal footing in the
job application process.
Two years after release from prison or
jail, twice as many employed people with
records had avoided running into trouble
with the law, compared to their unemployed
counterparts. A steady job provides not just
financial resources, but also connections to
a new community that can help reduce the
risk of recidivism.
What is “The Box?”
“The Box” is that spot on many employment
applications that asks whether the
applicant has been convicted of a crime
or been incarcerated. Some employment
applications may even inquire into arrests.
In one city, prior to a “ban the box”
ordinance being passed, only six percent
of people with criminal records were able
to find work. After the ordinance was put
in place, this figure jumped to 60 percent,
without any increase in theft or violence in
the workplace.
How it Works
Banning the box means removing the
20
question “Have you ever been convicted
of a felony or a misdemeanor?” from job
applications and providing basic protections
from discrimination for people with records.
In doing so, job applicants with criminal
records would have the opportunity to
present themselves and their qualifications
as a whole package, allowing them to be
considered on the merits of their skills and
experience – the same as all other applicants.
Activities
There are now two separate activities going
on simultaneously – a City of Portland
ordinance is under consideration, as well
as state legislation, HB 3025. Both would
allow employers to ask about an applicant’s
convictions, but not until later in the
hiring process, after the person has met the
minimum qualifications for the job. The bill
would not apply to law enforcement jobs
and other positions that, by law, require a
criminal background check.
What Can You Do?
Get involved by visiting the website: www.
fairchanceforall.com. They have a petition
you can sign and help circulate on Facebook
and Twitter. You can endorse the campaign
either as an organization or individual.
A Fair Chance for All is also looking for
stories. If you are a person who currently is
or ever has been in prison, think about these
questions:
1. Did you have a job when you
were arrested?
2. Have you ever felt discouraged
when filling out a job application?
3. Has “the box” ever kept you
from applying for a job?
4. Have you just stopped applying
for jobs altogether?
If you can relate, please help the campaign
by sharing your story with Patty Katz,
Oregon Action, at 126 NE Alberta, Suite
202, Portland, OR 97212.
My Youth Justice Journey
Justice Matters recently interviewed Adrienne Wilson about her
experiences as a member of PSJ. Adrienne is an active member and
volunteer and the parent of a child currently incarcerated under
Oregon’s mandatory minimum sentencing law, Measure 11. She
also sits on the Oregon Youth Authority’s Family Advisory Council
as a parent advocate.
Justice Matters (JM): How did you
first hear about PSJ?
Adrienne Wilson (AW): On July 14,
2013, the Portland Campaign to End
the New Jim Crow (CENJC) had a rally
at Peninsula Park to call for justice for
Trayvon Martin. During this time, my
son had recently introduced our family
to a close, personal relationship with
the youth justice system and I didn’t
like what I saw – at all.
So, I attended the rally hoping to get
plugged into the system with those
opposed to how the police and the
judicial systems treated black boys
like my son and middle-income
people like my family that lived in
predominantly black and/or lower
income communities.
Unfortunately, this rally wasn’t the
place to make the connections that I
was looking for, as it was more about
protest and no call to action at that
time. However, on the periphery of the
stage site were a couple of tables, one of
which was hosted by CENJC, and the
table host shared with me information
about their work, Michelle Alexander’s
book (The New Jim Crow), and invited
me to sign-up on their contact list,
which I did.
Months passed and as it turned out, I
was unable to attend any of the CENJC
meetings/events due to scheduling
conflicts. On August 13, 2014, my son
got arrested and was threatened with
a Measure 11 charge. Immediately,
my priorities changed drastically. I
purposely cleared my schedule to get
involved to find out more about what
my family was up against. I received
the CENJC September calendar on
September 2. I wasn’t
able to make their
general meeting on
September 7, but I
refused to miss the
next event on the
calendar: A Discussion
on
Ending
Mass
Incarceration, which
featured Partnership
for Safety and Justice as
a panelist.
I found a family of like-minded folks
that had the answers and the pertinent
questions to get more answers. It felt
like home.
JM: What made you want to stay
involved?
AW: It was clear to me that PSJ was
smart, effective, and that I could
learn a lot in their presence. Even
though I came late to the meeting,
very late due to work commitments,
I left there knowing that there was
power in my position as a concerned
community member and that PSJ
would guide me through the process
of making a difference for my son, for
my community, and for the victims of
crime – the whole spectrum.
After the event, I
attended some PSJ
meetings. I remember
at my first PSJ meeting:
I felt safe, validated,
and ready to roll with
PSJ at the helm for
change even though
I was still a shaky,
emotional mess due
to my son’s uncharted
future. On top of that,
I had limited time to
get up to speed on the
challenges that my
family faced, so I was
more than grateful that
21
My Youth Justice Journey
So, the next day, I signed up online to
be a part of PSJ’s Action Alert Network
to ensure that I got “next steps” on
how to put pressure on my elected
officials. I immediately received an
email thanking me for signing up
and encouragement to help PSJ in
“building a powerful voice for change
in Oregon’s criminal justice system.”
PSJ gently yet decisively was giving
me opportunities to stay engaged to
affect change. Quality and consistency
in their methods and message kept
me coming back.
again as I continued down
this unknown path of
youth incarceration.
That very same day, PSJ
sent me an email inviting
me to attend Advocacy Day at
the Capitol to fight to change
the law around for...drum roll
please...youth justice reform
through Measure 11!!! What?
Particularly, youth going through
intake at an adult prison....what???!
And House Bill 3194 for diverting funds
from building prisons to pouring funds
into community-based programs. I was
immediately energized, encouraged,
and filled with hope that someone
understood my struggle and had the
might and know-how to address the
issue. My prayers were answered. PSJ
was definitely where I was supposed to
expend my efforts.
In addition, PSJ’s emails helped me
to learn more about the hot topics
in Oregon’s justice system and how
I can work with PSJ to bring about
transformation in our broken system.
The continuing education was helping
me to become more knowledgeable
and forward thinking in my
approaches to help battle for the lives
of our youth, our families, and our JM: What do you like about PSJ?
community.
AW: PSJ keeps you involved in the
Right after that, another big day work. There are always volunteer
happened to our family: January opportunities that are particularly
13, 2014. This was the day my son soothing to me as a parent of a child
was transported to Coffee Creek currently incarcerated because I know
Correctional Facility and sent on his that I am making the system better
way to Hillcrest Youth for him, for other youth, for families,
Facility. I was emotional and for victims of crimes. Also, the
and off-balance once networking is invaluable. During
Advocacy Day, I told my story to
my senator and my representative
and was recently able to parlay
Without the
those introductions into separate
influence of and
meetings with both to talk
about the Second Look policy
training by PSJ
that I and other members of the
OYA Family Advisory Council
leadership, I would
are passionate about changing
never have thought
to better serve our youth in
Multnomah County.
that conversations like
these were possible
PSJ is a winning team
and they prepare their
players for the game.
that conversations like these
were possible – certainly not
with someone like me, simply
a parent. Well, I’ve learned that
the voice of a parent, a constituent,
and a concerned community member
is extremely powerful to our elected
officials. They do work for you and me.
We have to let our voices be heard –
it’s our right and more importantly our
responsibility. PSJ taught me all of this
and more and I don’t only like them, I
love them!!!
JM: What would you tell someone
who was thinking about becoming a
member of PSJ?
AW: PSJ is a winning team and they
prepare their players for the game.
PSJ will inform you of the newest
developments, help you to intelligently
decipher the information, expose you
to the decision-makers, train you to
deliver your message effectively and
give you opportunities to utilize all
of this newfound knowledge in the
battle for justice both in Oregon and
nationally.
You should join the team today…we’re
working to storm the field!
Without the influence
of and training by PSJ
leadership, I would
never have thought
22
YES, I WANT TO BECOME A MEMBER OF PARTNERSHIP FOR SAFETY & JUSTICE!
Name
Institution/ID # (if nec)
825 NE 20th Ave, Ste 250
Portland, OR 97232
503-335-8449
Address
Phone
H / W / C (circle one)
Email
Donation amount
Suggested membership donations: $15 - $35, $7 for people in prison. We rely on member support --- any gift
you make above $25 helps us a great deal. If you are a prisoner or low-income in Oregon only, and cannot
afford to make a donation, you can still become a member by checking here:
Contact me about making a monthly pledge using my credit/debit card or checking account!
Checks/money orders can be made payable to Partnership for Safety and Justice.
You can also give online using your credit/debit card at our website or by filling in the information below:
Name as it appears on card
Signature
Exp. Date
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Also Available to Prisoners in Oregon Prisons Only
Prisoner Support Packets
Oregon Child Support Modification
Our Prisoner Support Packet is available to Oregon prisoners only upon
request. Each packet includes a copy of Justice Matters and our 10-page
Resource Directory that lists criminal justice reform groups, national
organizations and advocacy groups, child and family resources, Books-toPrisoners programs, Pen Pal Services (most charge $) and more.
If you are serving over six months in prison or jail, you have the option of
asking for a modification of an existing child support order. For more
information, see Oregon Revised Statues (ORS) 416.455, 180.345 and
416.425. These documents should be available in your prison law library.
Prisoners - Know Your Rights
Oregon Transition Directory (updated September 2014)
PSJ has an assortment of documents from the ACLU and the NCLR that
outline the rights of prisoners in a variety of circumstances. These include
information regarding disabled prisoners; freedom of religion; visitation;
medical, dental and mental health care; assault and excessive force; the
“Prison Litigation Reform Act;” publications sent by mail; privileged and
non-privileged mail; and rights of transgendered persons. If you wish
more information, please write to us and request the specific ‘Know
Your Rights’ factsheet that you are interested in. Requests for ALL of the
factsheets cannot be accommodated because that much material is costprohibitive to mail.
PSJ’s Transition Directory is a 10-page resource available for prisoners in
Oregon. It lists prisoner-specific re-entry resources, survival resources like
food boxes and shelters, schools and higher education, contacts for other
resource guides, and more.
Prisoners in Oregon prisons may request these materials by writing to us at
Partnership for Safety and Justice, 825 NE 20th Ave, Ste 250, Portland, OR 97232.
23
Partnership for Safety and Justice
Portland, OR 97232
RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED
If your address label says “Expired”
this may beyour last issue unless
you renew your membership. Please
make a contribution today!
Justice Matters
is published by:
Partnership for Safety and Justice
Portland, OR 97232
(503) 335-8449
[email protected]
Board of Directors
Rebecca Nickels, President
Imran Ahmad, Lane Borg, Dana Hepper,
Bronson James, Kalpana Krishnamurthy,
Terry Leckron-Myers, April Rains
Justice Matters Editor: Denise Welch
Justice Matters Proofer: Gina Anzaldúa
Staff
Andy Ko, Executive Director
Shannon Wight, Deputy Director
Gina Anzaldúa, Policy Associate
Kerry Naughton, Crime Survivors Program Director
Lindy Walsh, Administrative Director
Denise Welch, Communications & Development Associate
Andrew Ek, Membership Engagement Intern
Elizabeth Hilliard, Law Student Intern
Heather McDowell, Policy and Advocacy Intern
Cover art, graphics and layout by += media LLC
Partnership for Safety and Justice (PSJ) works with people convicted of crime, survivors of crime, and the families of
both to advocate for policies that make Oregon’s approach to public safety more effective and more just. We are a
501(c)(3) organization.

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