By Devin Blake This story was originally published by Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service, where you can find other stories reporting on fifteen city neighborhoods in Milwaukee. Visit milwaukeenns.org. It’s tempting to begin a story about Emily Sterk with an anecdote about her advocacy around mass incarceration. Or with her reflections on how her privilege plays […]
MPD Pushes for More Facial Recognition Technology as a Federal Report Shows Persistent Bias
By Devin Blake This story was originally published by Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service, where you can find other stories reporting on fifteen city neighborhoods in Milwaukee. Visit milwaukeenns.org. As the Milwaukee Police Department moves to expand its use of facial recognition technology, a June report from the federal government finds this technology continues to disproportionately […]
Lawmakers Seek to Expand Alternatives to Incarceration for People with Mental Illness
By Devin Blake This story was originally published by Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service, where you can find other stories reporting on fifteen city neighborhoods in Milwaukee. Visit milwaukeenns.org. As Wisconsin’s prison population climbs toward pre-pandemic levels, Senate Bill 153 seeks to expand alternatives to incarceration. Wisconsin’s Treatment Alternatives and Diversion program was established in 2005 […]
Police Officers are Now in MPS. Here’s What You Need to Know
By Devin Blake This story was originally published by Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service, where you can find other stories reporting on fifteen city neighborhoods in Milwaukee. Visit milwaukeenns.org. Twenty-five police officers were assigned to 11 MPS schools on Monday, city officials said. This fulfills the requirements of both Wisconsin Act 12 and the orders of […]
Four Takeaways From the City’s Meeting About an ICE Facility on Northwest Side
The public got to hear details this week about a potential U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, facility on the Northwest Side.
Milwaukee is Losing a Generation of Black Men to Drug Crisis
Older Black men account for a growing share of Milwaukee drug deaths as fentanyl creeps into cocaine supplies, catching a generation unaware. By Edgar Mendez and Devin Blake Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service In many ways, Hamid Abd-Al-Jabbar’s life story involved redemption. A victim of abuse who was exposed to alcohol and drugs while growing up […]
Staff Shortages Create Less Support for People After Incarceration
By Devin Blake This story was originally published by Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service, where you can find other stories reporting on fifteen city neighborhoods in Milwaukee. Visit milwaukeenns.org. Vacancies for community corrections staff in Milwaukee County, including probation and parole officers, have nearly tripled since before the pandemic, Wisconsin Department of Corrections data shows. Some […]
One Child, $463,000 Per Year: Ballooning Costs of Troubled Lincoln Hills Youth Prison
A budget request would nearly double incarceration costs in Wisconsin’s juvenile justice system. Many say the funds would be better used to prevent crime. By Mario Koran Wisconsin Watch and Devin Blake Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service Wisconsin budgets nearly $463,000 a year to incarcerate each child at the state’s beleaguered juvenile prison complex in the […]
What Does Marriage Look Like While Incarcerated?
By Devin Blake This story was originally published by Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service, where you can find other stories reporting on fifteen city neighborhoods in Milwaukee. Visit milwaukeenns.org. Marshall Jones and his wife, Jessica, have an expression they use when worries about the future threaten to overwhelm them. “Here is holy,” they tell each other. […]
Some Students Ask for Compromise Over Police in Schools
By Devin Blake This story was originally published by Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service, where you can find other stories reporting on fifteen city neighborhoods in Milwaukee. Visit milwaukeenns.org. It’s been nearly six months since police officers were supposed to be stationed at Milwaukee Public Schools campuses under a new state law. While local and state […]