Multimedia and Web Resources

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Video

Jails are the “new insane asylums”
Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart, during an interview on 60 Minutes, warned about the dangers of sending mentally ill people to jail. Dart calls jails and prisons "the new insane asylums" and says the criminal justice system is not equipped to address issues of mental illness. More from CBS News

Successes seen in programs at Belknap County Jail
In the Belknap County Jail, one of the oldest jails in New Hampshire, inmates' artwork lines the walls while workers try to make sure that once released, those inside don't come back.

Inmate: Jail program 'opened my eyes'
A Kalamazoo County Jail program is expanding as it proves it can keep inmates from returning to the slammer. Inmates say the program works because it gets to the core of what's causing them to get locked up.

Why Are We Using Prisons to Treat the Mentally Ill? • OverCriminalized #1 • BRAVE NEW FILMS
Instead of helping the mentally ill, police often put them behind bars. Watch how one police department is making a positive difference.

Audio

As Court Fees Rise, The Poor Are Paying The Price
A yearlong NPR investigation found that the costs of the criminal justice system in the United States are paid increasingly by the defendants and offenders. It's a practice that causes the poor to face harsher treatment than others who commit identical crimes and can afford to pay. Findings reveal that impoverished people sometimes go to jail when they fall behind paying these fees.

Web Resources