Groups advocating for people detained in immigration facilities are calling for the reinstatement of a program which allowed 500 free minutes of phone calls per month.

In recent weeks, Immigration and Customs Enforcement cut off the free domestic and international calls, telling advocates pandemic-era funding has run out.

Rosa Santana, interim co-executive director of the Envision Freedom Fund, said families of the detainees often struggle to afford the calls, which can cost up to $3 for 15 minutes.

"Usually the person who is in detention is the breadwinner and now families have to be able to figure out how they could bring food and everything that the breadwinner used to bring, pay rent," Santana pointed out. "And on top of that now, it's having to pay for phone calls."

Immigration and Customs Enforcement did not respond to a request for comment. People in at least 16 ICE detention centers across the country have reported losing access to the free calls, including three sites in California: Golden State Annex, Mesa Verde Processing Center and Otay Mesa Detention Center.

Karim Golding, organizer for the nonprofit Freedom to Thrive, said the phone calls are a lifeline for people in detention; a connection to family that keeps their spirits up. In addition, human rights groups worry it could make it harder to monitor conditions on the inside.

"Absent the phones, how would we know that rights are being violated?" Golding asked. "How would we know if nobody has the ability to communicate?"

People in detention do still have access to work programs where they can earn about $1 for eight hours of work to spend on calls or items at the commissary.

Anyone age 18 or younger accused of violating Illinois law, who has formal charges filed against them, has historically had their case tried in a courtroom but some judges are choosing another option in hopes of keeping young people out of the system.

Courts in Avondale, Englewood, North Lawndale and Sauk Village in Cook County use restorative justice for nonviolent felony or misdemeanor cases for people ages 18-26. They attend court-appointed conferences or "peace circles" with family, friends and community members to encourage accountability.

Elizabeth Clarke, founder and executive director of the Illinois Juvenile Justice Initiative, thinks the restorative justice model should be expanded.

"Cook County should be using it, not just in low-level cases, but in really serious felony cases," Clarke contended.

Victims and survivors of crimes may volunteer to participate in the conferences. This Friday, the Juvenile Justice Initiative will host two restorative justice practitioners with the Youth Justice Agency in Belfast, Northern Ireland, speaking at the Adler Institute on Public Safety and Social Justice in Chicago.

The Cook County Circuit Court website said a "Repair of Harm Agreement" lists what a young offender must complete, from performing community service and writing a reflection letter, to attaining a high school equivalency diploma and finishing a substance abuse program.

Joshua Brooks restorative justice hubs coordinator for the Institute on Public Safety and Social Justice at Adler University, said restorative justice is a practice; a way of life borrowed from Indigenous beliefs.

"It's really based on the principle that we belong to each other, and we need to do right by each other," Brooks explained. "There are just several different principles and values that include relationship building, confidentiality, repairing harm, community building, shared power. And the way that it's practiced is usually through circles."

Brooks argued strengthening relationships with community members and bringing them into a place where they can trust one another is also important. If the young person completes the items on their list, criminal charges are dismissed and the case is expunged.

Chicago Appleseed for Fair Courts data show between 2020 and 2023, 100 people completed a restorative justice program. By March 2023, 94% had their charges dropped or dismissed.

South Dakota's police training program included a new course this year, one specific to tribal communities.

A class of 20 graduated yesterday from the state's law enforcement academy in Pierre, including eight officers from three tribal nations.

Before now, tribal police officers typically traveled to New Mexico to receive both basic training and instruction specific to Native communities. For the first time, the state training this year included a course on criminal justice in Indian Country.

Marty Jackley, Attorney General, said law enforcement in the state has always "enjoyed strong relationships" across jurisdictions.

"The key part of this training, it builds those already existing relationships and makes them stronger. And it keeps our tribal officers closer to home."

In the past, traveling to New Mexico for the 13-week training has been a barrier for tribal officers. The localized class came about through partnership with the Bureau of Indian Affairs and funding approved by Gov. Kristi Noem, despite tensions this year between the governor and tribal leaders.

Jackley noted he has included next year's class in his budget for the 2025 legislative session.

"The governor has been very supportive of this class and so the hope is we're able to recreate this and build upon it, one class every year," Jackley asserted.

The training was rolled out this spring following moves by all nine tribes across the state to ban the governor from their lands. The bans were largely in response to inflammatory statements Noem made, including her allegation tribal leaders are "personally benefiting" from area drug cartels.


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North Carolina has not carried out an execution in 18 years and advocates are urging Gov. Roy Cooper to commute all death row sentences before he leaves office.

Noel Nickle, executive director of the North Carolina Coalition for Alternatives to the Death Penalty, warned the long pause could end soon, as it depends on ongoing Racial Justice Act litigation and lethal injection protocol challenges.

"It's not a question of if executions will resume in North Carolina but it is a matter of when they will resume," Nickle contended. "Given the current makeup of our state legislature and our state Supreme Court, we feel certain that the two litigation issues that have prohibited executions will fall away."

North Carolina currently has the fifth-largest death row in the United States, with 136 people. The coalition has placed billboards around Raleigh to highlight the urgency of commuting these death sentences to life in prison.

Nickle argued abolishing the death penalty would be a major step toward a fairer justice system. She noted history has proven not everyone sentenced to death is guilty. In all, 12 people in North Carolina have been exonerated and released from death row. Nickle also pointed out racial disparities in death penalty sentencing.

"Sixty percent of our death row is made up of people of color and the demographic in North Carolina is that 30% of our citizens are people of color," Nickle outlined. "More than half the people on death row were sentenced by an all-white or a nearly all-white jury."

Nickle also challenged misconceptions about the death penalty, arguing it is neither fair nor cost-effective. She highlighted some victims' families have expressed executions do not bring healing or closure. Nickle also cautioned resuming executions would have a significant emotional and financial impact on the justice system.

"When executions resume, just imagine the strain and the traumas that will be placed upon the individuals, our state employees, not having done any executions in 18 years," Nickle emphasized. "We know from other states that have resumed executions that it's a tremendous strain on the system."

With 23 states in the U.S. having abolished the death penalty, the group hopes North Carolina will join the growing number of states choosing to end the practice. The group will continue advocacy efforts with a 136-mile walk on Sept. 26.


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