Each U.S. State Departments of Corrections

Activism and Organizing

The Real Cost of Prisons Project

The Real Cost of Prisons Project seeks to broaden and deepen the organizing capacity of prison/justice activists working to end mass incarceration. The Real Cost of Prisons Project brings together justice activists, artists, justice policy researchers and people directly experiencing the impact of mass incarceration to create popular education materials and other resources which explore the immediate and long-term costs of incarceration on the individual, her/his family, community and the nation.

http://www.realcostofprisons.org/

All of Us or None
Prison sentences for millions of people with felony convictions never really end when prejudice and discrimination based on felony criminal histories persist outside the prison walls. Former prisoners, prisoners, people convicted of felonies and their allies have come together to combat the many forms of life-long discrimination in All of Us or None.
http://www.prisonerswithchildren.org/news/allofusornone.htm

The Center on Juvenile and Criminal Justice (CJCJ)
CJCJ provides services to youth and adults across the country that are facing or transitioning from incarceration. CJCJs model programs demonstrate how alternatives to incarceration can be successful.
http://www.cjcj.org/

Citizens Against Recidivism, Inc.
Stopping the revolving door . . . . Neither imprisonment or the life after should mean the loss of all the rights and attributes of citizenship.
http://citizensinc.org/index.html

The Coalition for Higher Education Act Reform (CHEAR)
In 1998, Congress enacted an amendment to the Higher Education Act that every year denies loans, grants, even work-study jobs to tens of thousands of would-be students with drug convictions. Since that time, a student-led campaign to overturn the law has spread to hundreds of campuses around the nation. The Coalition for Higher Education Act Reform (CHEAR) comprised of education, civil rights, religious, drug policy reform and other organizations campaigns for Congressional repeal of the law.
http://www.raiseyourvoice.com

The Council on Crime and Justice
The Council on Crime and Justice is an independent, non-profit organization integrating research, demonstration projects and advocacy to bring just solutions to the causes and consequences of crime.
http://www.crimeandjustice.org/

Families Against Mandatory Minimums (FAMM)
FAMM is a national nonprofit organization that challenges mandatory sentencing laws. Mandatory minimums can propagate inflexible and excessive penalties. To change the system, FAMM promotes sentencing policies that give judges the discretion to sentence defendants according to their role in the offense, seriousness of the offense and potential for rehabilitation.
http://www.famm.org

The November Coalition
Website focusing on all aspects of the War on Drugs including links to resources and organizing.
http://www.november.org/

Informational Resources on the Second Chance Act of 2005
The Second Chance Act of 2005 is federal re-entry legislation designed to ensure the safe and successful return of prisoners to the community. The bill has been introduced in both the U.S. House (April 2005) and Senate (October 2005), and enjoys broad bipartisan support, including sponsorship by leaders in both chambers. In addition, the House Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security held a hearing on the Second Chance Act in early November, in which three Membersincluding Subcommittee Chairman Howard Noble (R-NC)called for fast tracking the bill. [Note, the original link here was a dud, so I changed it to the organization's main page.]
http://www.reentrypolicy.org/

The Justice Policy Institute
JPI is a Washington DC-based think-tank that is committed to reducing societys reliance on incarceration. The policy work of JPI aims to advance the quality and content of public discourse in the ongoing debate around juvenile and criminal justice system reform.
http://www.justicepolicy.org/

The Campaign for Youth Justice

(CFYJ)  is dedicated to ending the practice of trying, sentencing, and incarcerating youth under 18 in the adult criminal justice system. CFYJ advocates for juvenile justice reform through providing support to federal, state, and local campaigns; coordinating outreach to parents, youth, and families; fostering national coalition-building; encouraging media relations; conducting research; and publishing reports and advocacy materials.

http://www.campaignforyouthjustice.org

Juvienation
This news site covers developments in juvenile justice, hosts a forum for exploring ideas on how to reform the system, and serves as a resource for anyone interested in or curious about the subject.
http://juvienation.wordpress.com/

The National Juvenile Defender Center
The site provides descriptions of services and other work, announcements about latest projects, access to publications, and summaries of juvenile justice-related data for every state; it also allows visitors to join their mailing list, subscribe to their listservs, or request information about arranging a training session.
http://www.njdc.info/

Prison Legal News (PLN)
Prison Legal News is an independent monthly publication that reports, reviews and analyzes court rulings and news related to prisoner rights and prison issues. PLN has a U.S. focus with some international coverage as well. The website provides access to PLN articles, sells relevant books, and distributes information about related resources.
http://www.prisonlegalnews.org/

Prison Policy Initiative
Up-to-date listings for organizations providing legal services to people in prison and jail.
http://www.prisonpolicy.org/resources/legal/

Prisonsucks.com
Prisonsucks.com is a clearinghouse for useful, reliable statistics about prisons, the criminal justice system, and the crime control industry. The site provides factsheets, descriptions of information sources, and links to research organizations.
http://www.prisonsucks.com/

The Racial Disparity Initiative
The goals of the project are to make visible the often invisible discriminatory practices of denying employment to individuals with criminal records, to reduce the class and race based stigma of criminality and to challenge the popular media discourse that demonizes individuals with criminal records and individuals making the transition from prison to civil society. This project aims to challenge the belief that employing individuals with criminal records is a public safety risk.
http://www.racialdisparity.org

Regaining the Right to Vote
U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division website. (Note: some links are directly to DOCs. Some have specific voting information.) Following a criminal conviction, some states automatically restore a person's eligibility to register and vote in elections. Others require the individual to complete an additional process. Because each state or territory is different in its requirements and procedures, the best source of reliable information is the appropriate agency or office for the state in which you are interested. Web sites are listed for each state or territory. Where a state has posted specific information regarding the process by which individual can have his or her rights restored, the link is to that information. If not, we have provided the link to more general voter registration information for the state. These web site addresses are current as of May 1, 2009.
http://www.usdoj.gov/crt/voting/restore_vote.php

The Sentencing Project
The Sentencing Project is one of the nations leading organizations that develops alternative sentencing programs, conducts policy research on U.S. criminal justice, and advocates for creating meaningful reforms.
http://www.sentencingproject.org

The Urban Institute
The Urban Institutes Justice Policy Center carries out research to inform and shape the national dialogue on crime, justice, and community safety.
http://www.urbaninstitute.org/

Women

Legal Services for Prisoners with Children (LSPC)
LSPC works for the rights of incarcerated parents and people in risk of incarceration. LSPC provides information, trainings, and technical assistance, and responds to requests for help with litigation, community activism and the development of more advocates. In particular, the organization focuses on women prisoners and their families.
http://www.prisonerswithchildren.org/

Women and Girls in the Criminal Justice System
From the National Criminal Justice Reference Service. "Female criminal behavior has been commonly perceived as a less serious problem than male criminal behavior. Historically, women have been more likely to commit minor offenses and have made up only a small proportion of the offender population. Although women remain a relatively small number of all prisoners, these facts have concealed a trend in the rising percentage of female offenders, their participation in violent crime, and have inhibited the development of gender-specific programs to address the issue."
http://www.ncjrs.org/spotlight/wgcjs/Summary.html

Women and Prison: A Site for Resistance
Makes visible women's experiences in the criminal justice system. Documenting these stories is integral to this project of resistance. The stories are supported by a collection of resources, such as organizations, reports, essays, and links to a wide range of information on women and prison.
http://www.womenandprison.org/about.html

Capital Punishment

Death Penalty Information Center
The Death Penalty Information Center is a non-profit organization serving the media and the public with analysis and information on issues concerning capital punishment. Their website contains resources, news, and links addressing issues of clemency, the costs of capital punishment, the death penalty worldwide, race, gender, the execution of innocent people, and much more.
http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/

National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty (NCADP)
NCADP is one of the nations leading organizations devoted to abolishing the death penalty. NCADP provides information, advocates for public policy, and mobilizes and supports individuals and institutions that share our unconditional rejection of capital punishment.
http://www.ncadp.org/