Send a Virtual Holiday Letter to
Neighbors in the DC Jail
Three years ago, we started sending virtual holiday letters to our neighbors at the jail.
We did this because we heard from neighbors at the jail that the holidays are the hardest time to be away from family and loved ones. This remains true for the nearly 1,400 men and women at the jail and across the Department of Corrections.
Here's what we heard in response to letters sent last year:
We invite you to join the neighbors, churches, schools, and community groups that participate in sending a virtual holiday letter toour neighbors at the DC jail.
Thank you to More Than Our Crimes for creating a short film (see trailer above) of NFJ members, Anthony Petty and James Carpenter. This film tells the story of Anthony and James being incarcerated as teenagers and who they are now. It is a powerful look at the impacts of incarceration, how we change, and who we become.
NFJ Op-Ed: Mayor Bowser, It's Time to Take Control of Parole
NFJ team members published this op-ed in the DC Line. See preview below.
In Other News: Increased Oversight of the DC Jail and Revised Criminal Code
NEWS: The Judiciary Committee of the DC Council voted this past week to increase oversight of the DC Jail.This bill will require the Department of Corrections to:
Report on any deaths at the jail. There have been eight deaths at the jail this year.
Ensure young adults at the jail can access education.
Council Member Charles Allen noted, "DC’s criminal laws are a mess and literally decades and decades overdue for reform...[This overhaul]will provide much needed clarity to attorneys, judges, and juries, and create greater trust in the system for defendants, victims, and the public.”
(Shout out to Patrice Sulton, Executive Director of DC Justice Lab, who did much to contribute to the rewrite of the criminal code!)
