FAMM Foundation

Future of prison oversight office uncertain Governor Katie Hobbs signed a version establishing a corrections oversight office that did not include state appropriations.

Future of prison oversight office uncertain
(via @azpm.org)
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US families shoulder nearly $350B in annual costs tied to incarceration, report finds • Missouri Independent U.S. families lose nearly $350 billion each year due to the incarceration of a loved one in jail or prison, according to a recent report from the criminal justice advocacy group FWD.us. The estimate includes both direct expenses and long-term losses in household income. The findings are based on a n...

US families shoulder nearly $350B in annual costs tied to incarceration, report finds (via @missouriindependent.com)

https://pulse.ly/hiiev01jy1

Few prisoners let out under NJ’s compassionate release law | NJ Spotlight News Fewer than 10 inmates have been allowed out of prison to receive care or to die at home or near loved ones since the law took effect in 2021.

Few prisoners benefit from NJ’s compassionate release law
(via @njspotlightnews.org)
https://pulse.ly/sqznqlnqsu

Summers Are Brutal in New York’s Prisons. This Year Is Worse Than… Short-staffed since a strike this winter, the prison system is keeping people locked in their boiling cells and dorms for upwards of 21 hours a day.

Summers Are Brutal in New York’s Prisons. This Year Is Worse Than Ever.
(via @nysfocus.bsky.social)
https://pulse.ly/teuis0ufkn

#BeatTheHeat

Do Pennsylvania’s life sentence inmates deserve a second chance? COAL TOWNSHIP, Pa. (WHTM) — Nearly two dozen Pennsylvania lawmakers recently went to a prison to hear from those serving life sentences, also known as lifers, about possible criminal justice reform…

Do Pennsylvania’s life sentence inmates deserve a second chance?
(via ABC 27 News)
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Second Chances Build a Stronger Workforce Windowanddoor.com

Second Chances Build a Stronger Workforce
(via Window + Door Magazine)
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Parole is a key step to freedom after prison. Missourians face a ‘draconian’ system to get there Lack of transparency is a key flaw in Missouri's maligned parole system, says attorney Amy Malinowski.

Parole is a key step to freedom after prison. Missourians face a ‘draconian’ system to get there
(via @stlpublicradio.bsky.social)

https://pulse.ly/uw4etyeyiz

Lack of air conditioning in state prisons is cruel and unusual punishment • NC Newsline The Department of Correction has been pursuing an initiative to finally end this tortuous situation, but there remains a long way to go as many facilities remain unairconditioned.

Lack of air conditioning in state prisons is cruel and unusual punishment
(via NCNewsline)
ncnewsline.com/2025/08/05/l...

News Inside: How Incarcerated People Survive in Extreme Confinement News Inside Issue 20 documents survival and resilience under extreme conditions.

What Are Extreme Prison Confinement Conditions Like? See in the Latest News Inside (via @themarshallproject.org)

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The 4th session of "Intro to Impacting Prison Policy in IL" is here!

📅 Aug 7, 2025 | 5-6 PM CT.

Join this 8-session training to grow your advocacy skills. Register now to receive the link! 🔗 act.famm.org/a/intro-impa...

🚨 Attention advocates! Our FAMM Calendar is your hub for Advocacy Training, State/Federal Calls, Storytelling Workshops, and more.

Take a look and join us – we’d love to see you there! 🗓️
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Lockdowns are inhumane and can be dangerous. They happen far too often in our nation's prisons, and it's time to push back. Text JOIN to 40419 and learn about FAMM's Life on Lockdown campaign and how you can help.

#LifeOnLockdown

Pathways to Possibilities offers second chances for those with criminal records A resource fair aimed at helping individuals with criminal records find a fresh start was held at Eau Claire High School on Thursday.The event, called Pathways

A second chance: Midlands event helps participants rebuild after incarceration (via WACH FOX)
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North Dakota introduces new "mini prisons" Overcrowding in state prisons and jails is becoming a rising problem across the country, and that problem is no different here in North Dakota. But a solution has been put forth to help the rising …

North Dakota introduces new “mini prisons”
(via KX News)
https://pulse.ly/hzdagcnvzt

Scorching cells How heat threatens lives in America’s prisons

@reuters.com shared a story that everyone should read on life-threatening heat in prisons. With insights from FAMM’s Maria Goellner & Vanessa Rojas, it reveals why action is necessary to protect human dignity.

Read here for the full story https://pulse.ly/t5vu4mszgp
#BeatTheHeat

TDCJ says recent funding will add AC to 18,000 beds by 2028. Here's how many remain New numbers from the Texas Department of Criminal Justice project 18,000 new air-conditioned beds as a result of recent state funding in the first step towards full A/C coverage. Here's a look at how many prisoners will remain without A/C until the project is completed in 2032.

TDCJ says recent funding will add AC to 18,000 beds by 2028. Here's how many remain
(via Fox4News)
https://pulse.ly/zcbwzulhib

Thousands of books have made their way to DC-area prisons in an initiative started by a Md. student - WTOP News Some prisons in the D.C. area have their library shelves stocked, thanks to an initiative from a high school senior.

Thousands of books have made their way to DC-area prisons in an initiative started by a Md. student
(via @wtopnews.bsky.social )

https://pulse.ly/kxmhxxz2lt

Few released under NJ law meant to allow gravely ill inmates to die at home • New Jersey Monitor Only four people have been freed under a 2020 compassionate release law meant to allow more gravely ill inmates to die at home.

Few released under NJ law meant to allow gravely ill inmates to die at home
(via @newjerseymonitor.com)
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Five years ago today, FAMM released a powerful video sharing the story of Quentin Burt. After serving 30 years in federal prison, Quentin was granted compassionate release. The entire FAMM staff was overjoyed to witness Quentin and Pamela Burt's long-awaited reunion.

#SecondChance

'It's a hell hole:' Alabama women's prison criticized for inhumane conditions MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Inmates and their families are raising alarms about the dire conditions at Tutwiler Prison for Women, describing it as a "hell hole" amid ong

'It's a hell hole:' Alabama women's prison criticized for inhumane conditions (via NewsChannel 9)
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Advocates call on Gov. Tony Evers to veto bill that puts more people in prison for parole violations (via Milwaukee Journal Sentinel )
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FAMM noticed more lockdowns happening in prisons. How long do they last? What causes them? How are families kept informed? Help us find answers.

Share your experience (confidentially): act.famm.org/a/lockdown-e...

#LifeOnLockdown

“No one in America was sentenced to die of heatstroke in a prison."
-Maria Goellner, Senior Director of State Policy, FAMM

“I would roll up my mattress just to lay on the cold steel of the bunk bed to get a little relief from some of those times when the AC would break down,” said Vanessa Rojas, who was formerly incarcerated at Federal Correctional Institution, a federal prison in Tallahassee, FL

Scorching cells How heat threatens lives in America’s prisons

Scorching cells
How heat threatens lives in America’s prisons
(via @reuters.com) #BeatTheHeat

www.reuters.com/graphics/USA...

California gave a second chance to thousands of youth offenders — but not this group California made it easier for young people convicted of serious crimes to get a second chance, except for those sentenced to life without parole. New legislation could change that.

He confessed to a killing at 21. Is it time for California to give him a second chance?
(via @calmatters.org)

https://pulse.ly/qupppnab4t

Speak­ers describe loved ones’ ordeals in Alabama pris­ons | Chattanooga Times Free Press Advoc­ates, experts, formerly incar­cer­ated indi­vidu­als and fam­ily mem­bers of those behind bars described an Alabama prison sys­tem that kept inmates in a state of ter­ror and a parole sys­tem that robbed inmates of hope. Speak­ing to the...

Speakers describe loved ones' ordeals in Alabama prisons
(via @timesfreepress.bsky.social)

https://pulse.ly/rihubugaia

NJ erred by denying sick inmate's bid for release, high court says • New Jersey Monitor The N.J. Supreme Court decreed that doctors don't have to evaluate compassionate release applicants in person. But they do have to be timely.

NJ erred by denying sick inmate’s bid for release, high court says | Man died after seeking court’s intervention
(via @newjerseymonitor.com )

newjerseymonitor.com/2025/07/28/n...

Why NJ’s proposed parole reform stalled | NJ Spotlight News Gov. Phil Murphy called for ending parole revocation for technical violations. There was a lot of talk, then nothing happened.

Why did Murphy’s proposed parole reform stall?
(via @njspotlightnews.org)

https://pulse.ly/bycumtmldn

Woman with loved one in jail tells his story of life inside Woman with loved one in jail tells his story of life inside

Woman with loved one in jail tells his story of life inside
(via WREG News Channel 3)

https://pulse.ly/oxvnvstdq5