Month: January 2020

This Holiday Season, You Can Send Cards to Incarcerated Survivors

  • Stephanie Walker
  • December 3, 2019
  • Ms.

I’ve got a big family and lots of friends, so every year I send tons of holiday greetings. But two weeks ago, I spent most of the day writing cards to people I’ve never met—and these messages felt as special as any that I’ve ever written. That’s because they were for some of the most

Vermont Prisons Lack Independent Abuse Reporting Hotline

  • Paul Heintz
  • December 13, 2019
  • Seven Days

Signs posted throughout Vermont’s prisons encourage victims of sexual misconduct, physical violence and discrimination to dial what’s known as the Offender Reporting Line. “It is never too late to report!” one sign reads. But unlike similar hotlines at prisons throughout the U.S., Vermont’s does not connect to an independent, third-party organization. Rather, callers are directed

Attorney pushes for prisoners to have more access to women’s hygiene products

  • Amanda Robert
  • June 1, 2019
  • ABA Journal

Julie Abbate didn’t hesitate when members of the ABA Criminal Justice Section asked her to draft a resolution about prisoners’ access to tampons and sanitary pads in 2018. She had spent most of her 25-year legal career advocating for prisoners’ rights—particularly female prisoners’ rights—and knew from experience that they often lack access to feminine hygiene