Office of Justice Programs - U.S. Department of Justice: Weekly News Brief

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Office of Justice Programs - U.S. Department of Justice

Jun 02, 2010, 03:09 ET

WASHINGTON, June 2 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Review Panel on Prison Rape Public Hearing, June 3-4, Washington, DC—The Review Panel on Prison Rape will hold public hearings at OJP to assist the Bureau of Justice Statistics in identifying common characteristics of victims and perpetrators of rape in juvenile facilities. The Review Panel was established under the Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003 and is charged with holding annual hearings based on statistics gathered by the Bureau of Justice Statistics. Current members of the Review Panel are Gwendolyn Chunn, Sharon English, and Dr. Reginald A. Wilkinson. The hearings will be based on the recent BJS report, Sexual Victimization in Juvenile Facilities Reported by Youth, 2008-09

(http://bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov/index.cfm?ty=pbdetail&iid=2113). http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/reviewpanel/hearings.htm

Sentencing and Corrections Seminar, June 8, Washington, DC—BJS and the Justice Research and Statistics Association will hold a joint seminar at OJP on Sentencing and Corrections in the States. This seminar is open to the media and will be based on a special issue of the Justice Research and Policy journal, which examines sentencing and incarceration practices in five states and nationwide. Presenters are Richard Kern, Executive Director of the Virginia Criminal Sentencing Commission, and William Bales, Associate Professor in the College of Criminology and Criminal Justice at Florida State University. http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/newsroom/pdfs/BJS_and_JRSA_Joint_Seminar.pdf

National Institute of Justice (NIJ) Conference, June 14-16, Arlington, VA—This year's NIJ conference will showcase the benefits of evidence-based policies and practices in fighting crime. Experts will discuss crime research on forensic technology, indigent defense, domestic violence, human trafficking, the DNA backlog, and many other topics. Laurence Tribe, Senior Counselor, Access to Justice initiative, U.S. Department of Justice, will be the keynote speaker, Monday, June 14, 12:30 p.m. Registration is free and the conference is open to the media and public. http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/nij/events/nij_conference/welcome.htm.

Assisting Former Offenders:

Reentry Housing Options: The Policymaker's Guide, provides practical steps that lawmakers and others can take to increase public safety through better access to affordable housing for individuals released to the community. The guide uses case studies in Salt Lake County, Utah; Chicago, Ill.; and Wichita, Kan., to discuss various alternatives for reentry housing. The free publication was prepared in partnership with the Council of State Governments (CSG) Justice Center. www.ojp.usdoj.gov/BJA/pdf/CSG_Reentry_Housing.pdf.

Keeping Children Safe:

The Crime of Family Abduction: A Child's and Parent's Perspective (http://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/ojjdp/229933.pdf ), which offers insights into how an abduction of a child by a family member affects the child and the family. This book tells the stories of six individuals who have experienced the crime of family abduction, the most prevalent form of child abduction in the United States. These stories illustrate the three characteristics— concealment, intent to prevent contact, and flight—that distinguish family abduction from a typical custody battle between parents, and the psychological and social effects of this crime.

When Your Child Is Missing: A Family Survival Guide (http://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/ojjdp/228735.pdf ) provides advice about what to do when your child is missing and how best to assist law enforcement in the search. The first edition of the guide was written 12 years ago by parents who had experienced the trauma of a missing child. Since then, the increased pervasiveness of online media has led to the victimization of a greater number of children via the Internet. This fourth edition of the guide has been thoroughly revised and updated to include information about new technologies, particularly those that play a role in facilitating Internet crimes against children.