Two New Bills - One Bright Hope for California

::: "Family Connection" Bill Helps Families on the Outside Support Young People on
the Inside :::

For a young person in the Division of Juvenile Justice (formerly the California
Youth Authority), it's not easy to call home. Or mail home. Or see your parents.
The DJJ has truly abusive practices around visitation — even though family
involvement is proven to make rehabilitation more effective.

That could all change soon. Thanks to Assemblyman Curren Price, Books Not Bars is
introducing our first piece of legislation, which we call the "Family Connection"
bill (AB 1300). It would revolutionize family involvement in this terrible system,
making "promotion of family ties" part of the DJJ's core mission.

It's no secret that kids who stay connected to their families when they are inside
are far more successful when they get back outside. Assemblyman Price's bill will
greatly increase that crucial family connection by:
• requiring that youth be kept near their families when possible
• establishing a toll-free "Visiting Hotline" for family members to call, and
• allowing families to buy low-cost phone plans for the first time. (Currently,
young people can only call home collect, at exorbitant rates.)

We will need your help making sure the Legislature passes this life-saving bill and
that the Governor signs it.


::: Another New Bill Could Close the Youth Prisons Altogether!!! :::

Last Tuesday, the state's Inspector General released a damning report of the largest
CYA prison, Stark. The report concludes that the Chino prison still has the same
kind of problems it did when the youth prison scandal first erupted three years ago,
like young people being locked alone in cells for more than 23 hours a day for
months on end. The Inspector General warns that Stark prison is another tragedy
waiting to happen.

On the heels of this report, Assembly Speaker pro Tempore Sally Lieber (D-San Jose)
introduced a bill to close all of the state's youth prisons (AB 1655). Assemblywoman
Lieber has stepped into a hero's shoes, and needs and deserves our help in pushing
this bill through. Books Not Bars is working with her to finalize the language for
this bill, keeping an eye towards bolstering community-based alternatives for the
young people who would otherwise be in DJJ prisons.

Read Assemblywoman Lieber's press release:
http://democrats.assembly.ca.gov/members/a22/press/20070228AD22PR01.htm


::: The Year Has Only Just Begun :::

As you can imagine, this is tremendously exciting news for us. Your support for
this campaign is paying some incredible dividends, and the future is promising. But
we still have a long way to go before our kids are safe from these abusive,
dungeon-like prisons.

It's going to take work, will and determination to turn these bills into laws.
Luckily, that's one thing that supporters like you have never lacked. We know we
can count on you. Stay tuned for opportunities to help make sure that California
finally does the right thing and closes these horrible youth prisons.

Many thanks,

Jakada Imani
Campaign Director
Books Not Bars


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