Transforming Justice | Parole and probation, once thought a solution to mass incarceration, increased drastically since the 1980s. A new movement seeks to make it more equitable. Hope, racial equity and success are some of the values we want at the core o ...
19 Jul 2023 - Babak Zolfaghar... and Shannon Wight
Oregon’s 36 district attorneys are some of the most powerful actors in the public safety system, and about half of them are running for reelection in the May 17 primary election. Whether or not your district attorney’s name is on your ballot, this is an ...
10 May 2022 - Shannon Wight
TRANSFORMING JUSTICE | Addressing crime requires innovative solutions and new investment Violent crime rates are up. All of us have seen it in the news, and some of us have seen it in our lives. Pundits and policymakers are jumping to conclusions about ho ...
24 Nov 2021 - Shannon Wight
TRANSFORMING JUSTICE | Reasons for increased crime vary, so solutions should too Violent crime is up in cities across the nation, including Chicago, Philadelphia, Washington D.C. and now Portland — a city not usually on the high-crime map. Mothers are los ...
17 Nov 2021 - Shannon Wight
TRANSFORMING JUSTICE | Members of the coalition that created House Bill 2002 explain why the system must change Oregon’s public safety and criminal justice systems have worked for some, but they haven’t worked for all of us. These are systems built within ...
13 Apr 2021 - Shannon Wight
It’s time to divest in prisons and invest in BIPOC crime survivors and communities instead The racism inherent in our criminal justice system is finally being widely recognized — for centuries, Black, Indigenous, Latinx and other people of color have been ...
2 Sep 2020 - Shannon Wight and Amy Davidson
COMMENTARY | Voters face a choice: maintain Oregon's sanctuary status or further deepen racial disparities in our criminal justice system Often when we think about the disparities in our criminal justice system, we think about people who are arrested ...
12 Oct 2018 - Shannon Wight
COMMENTARY | Instead of 2nd women's prison, Oregon can invest in other efforts to strengthen families, communities The 2017 presidential election and the uncertainty it’s caused make it imperative that we work in our homes, workplaces, neighborhoods, ...
19 Jan 2017 - Shannon Wight
COMMENTARY | Trump's AG pick threatens progress in shrinking prison populations As I write this column, it’s been less than 48 hours since Donald Trump announced Sen. Jeff Sessions as his choice for attorney general. My chest tightens and tears fill ...
1 Dec 2016 - Shannon Wight
COMMENTARY | Prosecutors, legislators have power to choose how to better spend $10M on women convicted of crime At the end of September, the Emergency Board of the Oregon State Legislature will consider a request from the Department of Corrections for nea ...
18 Aug 2016 - Shannon Wight