Two Kentucky laws recently went into effect are expected to increase the number of incarcerated children in the state, according to a new report from the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy.

House Bill 3 requires any child charged with a violent felony offense be detained for up to 48 hours, not including weekends or holidays, pending a detention hearing in front of a judge. It could affect a significant number of juveniles because Kentucky law is much broader than most states in what it categorizes as a violent offense.

Kaylee Raymer, analyst at the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy, said hundreds of additional children are likely to be detained.

"Not only because detention is harmful for young people regardless of how long they're there, but because Kentucky's juvenile facilities are struggling with staffing," Raymer explained. "There's a Department of Justice investigation going on."

Raymer pointed out the law comes amid widespread staffing shortages in Kentucky's juvenile detention facilities, and a class-action lawsuit against the state's Department of Juvenile Justice. Louisville's detention facility, which House Bill 3 appropriated more than $17 million to renovate, remains incomplete, meaning children in Jefferson County will be detained hours away from their families.

Another piece of legislation, Senate Bill 20 would require kids be tried as adults in some instances where there is an allegation a gun was involved in a crime but not necessarily used.

Raymer emphasized the law reverses three-year-old reforms ending automatic transfer of children to adult court and placed discretion back in the hands of the judge.

"This means it takes a lot of discretion away from the judge," Raymer contended. "We're going to see a lot more cases going to adult course."

Research shows trying kids as adults does severe damage to mental health and does not deter committing future offenses.

One study found the prevalence of psychiatric disorders among youth transferred and detained in the adult court system is nearly double that of adults. According to data from the Annie E. Casey Foundation, in 2022 slightly more than 13 out of every 1,000 Kentucky children aged 10-19 were booked into a secure juvenile detention facility.


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Formerly incarcerated Mississippians will share their stories about rebuilding their lives at the "Redemption Over Retribution" fall conference next month.

Mississippi has one of the world's highest incarceration rates.

Pastor Wesley Bridges, CEO of Clergy for Prison Reform, a faith-based organization that supports families with incarcerated loved ones and amplifies their voices, said the conference will offer resources and feature people who've been released from prison in a vairety of roles - including preaching, singing, teaching and workshops.

"We're doing that again, to shine the light on the fact in Mississippi that second chances work," he said. "So, we did that in Jackson in April. We're going to do it in Columbia, Mississippi, again in September. And we hope again to have it 100% of people that are formerly incarcerated - because nobody can tell the story like they can tell the story."

The in-person conference will be Sept. 27-28 at New Life Fellowship Church in Columbia.

Bridges said the organization was established in 2015, at the height of turmoil within the Mississippi Department of Corrections. This period saw rampant gang violence and arson, as tensions boiled over in prisons because of living conditions and related issues.

Bridges emphasized that Clergy for Prison Reform aims to enlighten legislators and the people of Mississippi about the importance of recognizing the humanity of individuals behind bars. He said the group collaborates with like-minded organizations to advance their goals.

"And we advocate for laws that are antiquated to be removed from books, laws that don't make moral or fiscal sense for the State of Mississippi," he said. "We advocate for compassionate release. We advocate for suffrage for those that are released, who've paid their debt to society, to have something to return to."

He said he's convinced Mississippi could decrease its prison population by re-examining some cases. As an example, he cited an 85-year-old woman whose parole was recently denied and won't be reconsidered for another five years. He added that implementing more compassionate release policies could lead to more efficient use of state resources.


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Property crime in California is near record lows, according to the latest statistics from the California Department of Justice.

A new report from the Center on Juvenile and Criminal Justice finds property crime is down 53% statewide since 2005, and 16% since 2009, when criminal justice reforms began to take effect.

Mike Males, senior researcher with the Center on Juvenile and Criminal Justice, said people on television who claim otherwise are cherry-picking local statistics while ignoring the larger trend.

"All these insinuations we're seeing nationwide across the political spectrum and in a lot of media is that California crime is out of control. And it's just not true. Just the opposite is the case," he said.

This fall, Golden State voters will decide on Proposition 36, which would reverse parts of Prop 47, a criminal justice reform bill from 2014. More thefts would be deemed felonies - sending more people to jail - by lowering the cutoff on the value of property stolen. It would also classify certain drug offenses as treatment-mandated felonies and increase penalties for some drug crimes.

Prop 36 is supported by some law enforcement groups. The largest contributors include Walmart, Target and Home Depot.

Will Matthews, a spokesperson for the nonprofit Californians for Safety and Justice, pointed out that Prop 47 has saved the state $850 million so far in incarceration costs, and diverted that money to programs that combat the drivers of crime - such as poverty and addiction.

"We can't put all of our safety investments into just responding to crime and harm after they occur. We also have to be investing in community-based crime and harm-prevention programs," said Matthews.

The California Legislative Analyst estimates that Prop 36 could cost the state hundreds of millions of dollars per year in increased incarceration costs, and could reduce funds going to mental health and drug treatment programs, K-12 schools and crime victims.

The window to apply for a medical cannabis business license in Kentucky closes at the end of this month.

The Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services said it has received around a dozen permit applications for medical marijuana businesses.

Paula Savchenko, founder of the Cannacore Group, a cannabis and psychedelic licensing firm and PS Law Group, a regulated substances law firm, said licenses are the first step in setting up the framework for the state's industry. She pointed out she is working with farmers across the Commonwealth who are interested in applying for licenses. She expects the number of applications to increase by the deadline.

"I think what's happening is that people are just waiting to submit their applications until closer to the deadline," Savchenko noted. "Because it does take some time to get all the pieces together and ready to submit."

In 2023, Gov. Andy Beshear signed Senate Bill 47 into law, legalizing medical cannabis for Kentuckians; the law goes into effect on Jan. 1.

Around nine in 10 Americans say marijuana should be legal for medical or recreational use, according to a Pew Research Center survey done last year. An overwhelming majority of adults said they believe marijuana should be at least legal for medical use.

Savchenko emphasized interested individuals should take the time to understand the different types of licenses available.

"There's manufacturing, which would be extraction, infusion, and then there's retail, which would be dispensaries," Savchenko outlined. "In the next round, there's also going to be licenses that allow for both cultivation and manufacturing."

Criminal justice reform advocates argued legalizing marijuana must come with record expungement and reinvestment in the communities most harmed by marijuana convictions.


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