After 15 years in prison, a St. Louis woman now fights for the formerly incarcerated kbia.org - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from kbia.org Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Survivors of human trafficking in Indiana are required to provide testimony in person during trials, but a new bill would allow young survivors to submit pre-recorded video statements. The proposal would apply to survivors who were 14 or younger at the time of their assault, as long as they re still a minor during the trial. Rep. .
The Florida Department of Corrections now bans people in prison from receiving traditional mail, such as greeting cards and handwritten letters, requiring that it be scanned and sent electronically, with few exceptions. The department says the change was made to reduce contraband from entering facilities, but Denise Rock, executive director of Florida Cares Charity Corp., sees it as choosing to punish the estimated 80,000 people in prison for an offense that affects less than 1% of the prison population. Rock said the department is taking away important intangibles, such as being able to hold and smell the paper a loved one has written on, "or touch the colors of the crayons that your child wrote a card to you. .
Maryland could become the second state in the nation to provide specific support for the health and well-being of incarcerated people who are pregnant and their newborns. In the next General Assembly, a bill will recommend community-based alternatives to jail or prison for pregnant women with nonviolent offenses, for up to one year after the birth. Current Maryland law requires separating an incarcerated mother and infant after two to three days. .