Media Advisory Contact Evan Serpick 410-234-1091 Today the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced the findings of its investigation into the “patterns or practice” of the Baltimore Police Department (BPD), launched in the wake of the death of Freddie Gray. The report concludes that “there is reasonable cause to believe that BPD engages in a […]
-
Presidential commutations highlight importance of reentry services
Monday, August 08, 2016President Barack Obama meets for lunch with formerly incarcerated individuals who have received commutations, at Busboys and Poets in Washington, D.C., March 30, 2016. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) Last week, President Obama commuted the drug sentences of 214 federal prisoners— many of them serving time for non-violent drug offenses involving possession or […]
-
OSI announces new date, keynote speaker for Solutions Summit
Friday, August 05, 2016OSI-Baltimore has several important announcements regarding our Solutions Summit. Due to a conflict with a meeting of Maryland’s Legislative Black Caucus, the summit has been moved to December 10, 2016, which is also International Human Rights Day. We are also VERY proud to announce that the keynote speaker for the summit will be Sherrilyn Ifill, […]
-
OSI’s Tara Huffman discusses dropped charges in Freddie Gray case on WYPR
Thursday, July 28, 2016Tara Huffman, director of OSI-Baltimore’s Criminal and Juvenile Justice program, joined WYPR’s Midday show to discuss the decision by State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby to drop charges against three police officers charged in the death of Freddie Gray. “Holding these officers accountable, bringing the charges, and pursuing justice in this frame was just one component of […]
-
OSI-Baltimore statement on the decision to drop charges in the death of Freddie Gray
Wednesday, July 27, 2016Media Advisory Contact Evan Serpick 410-234-1091 In a press conference this morning at Gilmor Homes, where Freddie Gray lived and was taken into custody in April 2015, State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby announced that her office would drop the pending charges against three officers in the death of Mr. Gray. The move comes after three other […]
-
What can Baltimore learn about policing from Camden, New Jersey?
Tuesday, July 26, 2016Photo by Mary Rose Madden In part 9 of On the Watch, WYPR’s OSI-funded series on community policing, reporter Mary Rose Madden goes to Camden, New Jersey, where homicides have dropped 24% in recent years, after the police department was disbanded and re-formed with a community policing model. Madden walks the beat with Camden cops […]
-
Congress approves $181 million for addiction and recovery response
Thursday, July 14, 2016After passing in the House last week, the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act (CARA) passed in the Senate this week and is now headed to the president’s desk for signature. This is a major piece of legislation and the first drug-related law in nearly 40 years to pass with no criminal penalties attached to it. The […]
-
OSI-Baltimore Statement on the Acquittal of Officer Caesar Goodson
Thursday, June 23, 2016As the third trial in the death of Freddie Gray ends without a conviction, it’s clearer than ever that the injustices Mr. Gray’s case represents will not be resolved in a court room, but with long-term, sustained work to uproot the structural racism in our criminal justice system and beyond. It’s important that the legal […]
-
Coming together, continuing the struggle after Orlando
Monday, June 13, 2016We at OSI-Baltimore join communities across the world who are devastated at the mass killing in Orlando this weekend. Below, we share a statement from our friends at Free State Legal and Equality Maryland, whose work we are proud to support, along with their list of opportunities to gather, mourn, and talk about the way […]
-
Advocates, community discuss adolescents, addiction, and juvenile justice
Thursday, June 02, 2016Last night, a wide range of advocates, activists, families touched by addiction, and other community members packed Red Emma’s for a Talking About Addiction event focused on youth, addiction, and the juvenile justice system. The speakers included Evan Elkin (with the microphone, above), executive director of Reclaiming Futures, a Portland, Oregon-based organization established to build, run and test […]
