In the state of Maryland, prison inmates serving life sentences can only be granted parole by final decree from the governor. Even for elderly inmates at high risk of COVID-19 infection, as well as inmates who were sentenced to life in prison before they were legal adults (i.e., when they were still children), Maryland Governor Larry Hogan has refused to use this power to grant parole to many who desperately need it. However, at the tail end of the latest legislative session, Maryland’s General Assembly passed the SB0202 bill, which repeals this rule, putting decision-making power in the hands of a parole commission.
In a recent episode of “Rattling the Bars†(originally published on March 22, 2021), TRNN Executive Producer Eddie Conway spoke with guests Pamela Sessoms, whose incarcerated fiancé contracted COVID-19 inside a Maryland prison, and Marc Schindler, the executive director of the Justice Policy Institute, about this parole policy. To help viewers understand SB0202, why it’s important, and what it will mean for inmates and their families, we have compiled sections from that conversation here.
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** (Disclaimer: This video content is intended for educational and informational purposes only) **
We are a stewpid peeple….
They made the system profitable. We need Justice reform. Democracy dies in darkness so they won't change it unless we bring it into the light.
Our culture is broken in that we have so many people who think crime is acceptable and those who try to sympathize with it…like this network
Congrats to RealNews for continuing to cover issues like this one. Prison and its problems don't generate a lot of YouTube traffic, but are truly necessary to continue to be covered.
Exactly you don't know. You aren't an epidemiologist. You don't get a free pass to go home bc of a virus. Ppl get sick in prison everyday. So what? Yes prisoner have to sanitize their own areas. Big deal. They are supposed to. No one told you to be attracted to a man in prison and hold him down for 36 years. Both of y'all crazy
Do u know how many prison guards there are in America? You want them tested twice a week? You crazy as u look
Like, share, anÉ– spam video
There is a special kind of sickness in the USA and it is at the core of its predatory system held together by the glue of racism… Well, good luck folks.
NO MORE GLASS BARRIER IN VISIT ROOM—-that is TORTURE especially for families that drive hours to visit the love ones
guys keep up the good work ,,,i can not find that page that you are using in the video showing the corps exploiting fascism in prison labor camps ,,,If you want ppl to help provide links fliers and documentation so ppl can print or show to others,, I think the only success i have ever known is the LOPEZ FELICIANO VS UNITES STATES where HUMAN RIGHTS Violations at that time won the 8' by 10' cell space by inmate , ccccccccccccccccc
Almost four decades in jail means that they are clearly not even pretending to "rehabilitate".
Seems to me it's our societal system itself that needs the most rehabilitation.
Damn politics. The Parole Commission sounds like it definitely is the right way to go. I tried to find the date for their last legislative assembly and it's a bloody nuisance, not easy, and I'm not going to spend a LOT of time trying to find out. I get plenty of links searching using SB0202 and Maryland for search terms, but many links are returned and a few pages I checked didn't specify when this assembly occurred. SO, it would've been good for TRNN to specify the date in the summary description for this video, because it isn't in the video, either. Anyway, it's very disappointing (and outrageous) when state political leaders are MINDLESS enough to not sanely and ethically/morally parole prisoners who indisputably must be paroled. Not doing so is more contribution to making the USA a hellish police and prison state. Such a condition is like having NO heart, no soul, no moral/ethical thinking, NO conscience. Too many voters are dumb, politically tainted, biased, brainwashed due to politically tainted families, UNTHINKING, etc., whatever thoughts they have being pretty much worthless, socially speaking anyway.
Thank You . . . and YES its broken alright – white people get court transferred treatment program like trial diversion
it is lacking severely for POC
OK…
Hypothetically speaking.
Let's say the state grants parole to a vast number of those already incarcerated.
Where are those people going to go?
Remember now.
Not all inmates have families willing to take them in.
Also, many families of inmates want nothing to do with them anyway.
There aren't enough shelters for the legions of the current homeless population. Throwing out a large swath of inmates will pour fuel on that fire.
Secondly…
Where are those paroled inmates going to find stable employment?
We are now in a worse than Great Recession economic crisis. Companies are now streamlining operations, off-loading current employees, and embracing machine automation and other labor saving devices in the workplace.
Basically…
All of you are condemning countless people to chronic unemployment and homelessness on the streets.
You aren't looking at the long term impact.
The USA is broken
Cops are enforcers for the rich…..and shock troops for Wall St.
The tiny comfort is that the rich and powerful could care if a cop.lives or dies…..but……the cops don't know it.
The entire legal system is broken. Everything that's broken can be fixed but people in power want it to stay broken.
From Cops making arrest without probable cause, using Unnecessary Excessive Force, to making it too expensive to post Bail, The Entire Law Enforcement system is broken.
Florida has no parole. ðŸ‘
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