Jail

Some Prisoners Invited To Vote By Absentee Ballot For The First Time This Year

Valentine’s Day took on new meaning Friday as members of five organizations continued their tour to get persons in jail and prison registered to vote by absentee ballot in the upcoming primary and beyond.

Jefferson County Commission Moves to Preserve Downtown Jail Where Martin Luther King Jr. Was Held

The Jefferson County Commission Thursday took the first steps toward acknowledging and preserving remnants of the jail where Martin Luther King Jr. was held.

Alabama ACLU Proposes Plan to Cut Mass Incarceration

Earlier this month the American Civil Liberties Union announced a goal of releasing 50 percent of Alabama prisoners by the year 2025 through a report aimed at tackling mass incarceration.

INTERVIEW: Rick Vest, Counseling Coordinator Of Two-Year College For Prisoners

J.F. Ingram State is a unique part of Alabama's two-year college system because one hundred percent of its students are incarcerated. Its new pilot program at Julia Tutwiler Prison focuses on life skills, not just vocational training. As part of our prison-reporting partnership with Alabama Media Group's Investigative Journalism Lab, WBHM's Dan Carsen spoke with Ingram State Counseling Coordinator Rick Vest outside Ingram's Tutwiler campus. Among other things, Vest says learning job skills isn't enough.