Tuesday
Jun292004
NJ -- Community groups look to reduce minority Prison Population.
Tuesday, June 29, 2004 at 11:11PM
80% are Hispanic or Black
Eighty percent of state prison inmates are black or Hispanic, a population growing thanks to mandatory minimum sentences and poor legal representation, community activists said Monday. To combat the problem, representatives from the state Parole Board and Department of Corrections will join social service groups to provide job training, drug counseling and other programs. Blacks and Hispanics are far more likely to serve time for drug offenses, and New Jersey ranks near the top in several national categories that show minorities far outnumber whites in the criminal justice system, said Gale Muhammad, an organizer with Families Against Mandatory Minimum [more]
Eighty percent of state prison inmates are black or Hispanic, a population growing thanks to mandatory minimum sentences and poor legal representation, community activists said Monday. To combat the problem, representatives from the state Parole Board and Department of Corrections will join social service groups to provide job training, drug counseling and other programs. Blacks and Hispanics are far more likely to serve time for drug offenses, and New Jersey ranks near the top in several national categories that show minorities far outnumber whites in the criminal justice system, said Gale Muhammad, an organizer with Families Against Mandatory Minimum [more]