Advocacy E-News January 27, 2016
January 27, 2016
OBAMA BANS SOLITARY CONFINEMENT OF JUVENILES IN FEDERAL PRISONS
President Obama on Monday banned the practice of holding juveniles in solitary confinement in federal prisons, saying it could lead to “devastating, lasting psychological consequences.”
The move, which Mr. Obama outlined in an op-ed article published by The Washington Post on Monday night, adds the weight of the federal government to a growing movement among state prison administrators, who have begun sharply limiting or ending the use of solitary confinement.
WHERE POLICE VIOLENCE ENCOUNTERS MENTAL ILLNESS
The rules for use of deadly force by police in New Jersey are clear.
NEARLY 20 years ago, I was a social worker in a county jail where I first began to understand just how frequently the police deal with people with mental illnesses. All too often, those interactions can end in violence and death. What’s remarkable is that, even about 20 years later, the police remain the primary responders to mental health crises. There are two simultaneous national crises — one of police violence and the other of inadequate mental health treatment — and we are making a mistake if we focus blame only on the police.
CHRISTIE ENDS WAIVER FOR FOOD STAMP WORK REQUIREMENT
About 11,000 New Jerseyans may have their food assistance discontinued after Gov. Chris Christie’s administration said Thursday that the state is no longer offering a certain waiver in the program. The change took effect on New Year’s Day in five counties: Hunterdon, Morris, Passaic, Somerset, and Sussex. It begins Feb. 1 for the rest of the state.
PA. REACHES DEAL IN JAILING THOSE WITH MENTAL ILLNESS
The state has reached an agreement with the American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania in a case alleging that hundreds of people with mental illness were left in county jails across the commonwealth for far longer than is constitutional. When people with mental illness are criminally charged, they must receive treatment to see if they could aid in their own defense. Federal courts have ruled that defendants shouldn’t be left waiting for hospitalization for more than a week.
PANEL SAYS ALL PREGNANT WOMEN SHOULD GET SCREENED FOR DEPRESSION
All pregnant women should be screened for depression and evaluated again after the child is born, according to a recommendation Tuesday by a national medical panel that concluded early diagnosis and treatment are effective. The advice from the US Preventive Services Task Force came as no surprise to medical professionals in New Jersey, which became the first state in the nation a decade ago to require postpartum depression screening for all women before they are discharged from the hospital and during follow-up visits with a pediatrician.
FIND YOUR LOCAL NAMI
