It also produces research and reports on specific aspects of the criminal legal system, including "States of Emergency: The Failure of Prison System Responses to COVID-19," "Rigging the jury: How each state reduces jury diversity by excluding people with criminal records," and "Eligible, but excluded: A guide to removing the barriers to jail voting."
Executive director Peter Wagner has testified on the issue before the National Academies and the New York State Legislative Task Force on Demographic Research and Apportionment.
Aside from the high rates, fees also have an enormous impact on prison phone bills, making up 38% of the $1 billion annual price of calling home.
[7] The Prison Policy Initiative published the first-in-the-nation report on the new jail trend of banning letters from home and requiring loved ones to write on public postcards.
These laws aim to deter offenses near places such as schools, but when the protected areas are too big, the deterrence effect is lost and these policies end up increasing harmful racial disparities.