Spirit of Jefferson - If we want to understand what is happening in West Virginia jails and prisons, we must listen to the people inside them. The Division of Corrections and Rehabilitation (DCR) has taken a step in that direction. Read the full op-ed. On Monday, the agency released a new policy that allows people…
Criminal Legal System
If we want to understand what is happening in West Virginia jails and prisons, we must listen to the people inside them. The Division of Corrections and Rehabilitation (DCR) has taken a step in that direction. On Monday, the agency released a new policy that allows people behind bars to submit their grievances electronically. A…
On Wednesday, Mark Holdren stood in a Charleston courtroom and told a federal judge that he was guilty of a civil rights conspiracy that resulted in the death of Quantez Burks. Mr. Burks, who would have been 40 years old next month, was arrested by Beckley police on February 28, 2022. Unable to post the…
A few months ago, lawmakers on West Virginia’s jail oversight committee heard a familiar complaint: the jail bills are too high. One county commissioner after another appeared before the committee with the same request: please don’t make us bear the full cost of our jail bill. The jail bill saga started decades ago. In 1985,…
Public News Service - Changes in bail policy don't affect crime rates in cities nationwide, according to new data from the Brennan Center for Justice. Read the full article. Cash bail has driven up jail overcrowding in West Virginia, and the state continues to struggle with record-high staff vacancies within the Division of Corrections and Rehabilitation.…
For Immediate Release: September 17, 2024 Contact: Jeff Biddle Jr., Executive Director, Midian Leadership Project, midianleadership@gmail.com, (304)-382-8288 Charleston, WV – West Virginia’s criminal legal system for children is at a crossroads. Juvenile reforms implemented in the 2010s led to decreases in the number of criminal cases filed against youth. But as West Virginia emerged from the COVID-19 pandemic, the trend…
This report was co-released by the WVCBP and the Midian Leadership Project. Introduction In the spring of 2023, we at the Midian Leadership Project teamed up with the American Friends Service Committee to host listening sessions with young adults who had spent part of their childhood in the criminal legal system. Read the full report.…
In April 2024, the WVCBP called on the West Virginia Division of Corrections and Rehabilitation (DCR) to make their policies and procedures public. Like most government agencies, DCR has the authority to create its own policies and procedures. This administrative law covers every facet of an agency that houses tens of thousands of people every…
West Virginia News - The West Virginia NAACP has filed a lawsuit against three state departments, accusing them of failing to collect crucial data intended to improve the juvenile justice system. The lawsuit, filed in Kanawha County Circuit Court, targets the West Virginia Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Human Services, and the Department…
West Virginia Watch - The state NAACP has filed a lawsuit against three West Virginia departments, alleging they failed to collect data meant to improve the juvenile justice system. Read the full article. The organization filed the lawsuit Thursday in Kanawha County Circuit Court. The complaint lists as defendants the state Department of Homeland Security,…