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After 3 years and $1.5 million devoted to testing rape kits, Alaska made one new arrest

Kyle Hopkins

December 30, 2020 |

Anchorage Daily News |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Alaska

Despite hopes that testing a backlog of rape kits would reveal many new serial-rape suspects, Alaska's three-year push to test 568 kits under the federally funded Sexual Assault Kit Initiative led to only one new prosecution. The reasons the program fell short of expectations include a lack of usable DNA samples, errors by investigators, cases in which victims and suspects had died or victims no longer wished to proceed, or the kits revealed no evidence that wasn't previously known. Alaska is now footing the bill to test more kits, which contain physical evidence collected after a rape.

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Prosecutors try to keep people out of pandemic-clogged courts through diversion programs

Rebecca Rivas

December 30, 2020 |

Missouri Independent |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, St. Louis, Missouri

Missouri legislators passed a law in 2019 clarifying that prosecutors can divert criminal cases to social services and healthcare agencies even before charges are filed. Small experiments that had been taking place in recent years suddenly grew in St. Louis County to help the courts focus only on serious cases during pandemic shutdowns. Now those innovations are spreading, as more drug cases and other low-level cases avoid the courts altogether. This eases the burden also on people, who in traditional drug courts still get arrested and face employment barriers even if their cases eventually get dropped.

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Pima County program getting people out of jail quicker, speeding up chances for a new life

Caitlin Schmidt

December 29, 2020 |

Arizona Daily Star |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Tucson, Arizona

An array of services in Pima County, Arizona, greets hundreds of people getting released early from jail or helps keep them out of jail in the first place. By providing drug treatment, housing, job assistance, and other help that people need instead of incarceration, the county's Criminal Justice Reform Unit and Jail Population Review Committee saved the county $2 million in jail costs over just part of 2020. Drug use also declined and officials hope to see longer-range benefits in lower recidivism.

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An Alternative to Police That Police Can Get Behind

Rowan Moore Gerety

December 28, 2020 |

The Atlantic |

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Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Eugene, Oregon

A street-level view of White Bird Clinic's CAHOOTS program in Eugene explains its appeal as a cost-saving, humane alternative to sending the police to 911 calls concerning mostly minor problems involving homelessness, mental illness, and substance abuse. From the decades-old program's countercultural beginnings to today's 24/7 presence, the private agency's publicly funded teams of a medic and crisis worker have helped keep problems from escalating into violence and jail time. But a number of factors call into question how scalable this approach would be in larger, more diverse cities.

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After a sexual assault, where can you get a medical and forensic exam?

Catie Beck Adiel Kaplan Alexa Keyes Wilson Wong

December 28, 2020 |

NBC News |

Broadcast TV News |

3-5 Minutes

Response Location: United States

A critical element in responding to rapes with trauma-informed victim care that aids an eventual prosecution is a sexual assault forensic exam. Rape kits, as they are known, are best administered by highly trained Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners (SANEs). But the first nationwide census of available SANEs shows enormous gaps in availability and training. Federal aid since 2005 has helped improve care, and some states have innovated workarounds, including regional mobile SANE units for underserved areas.

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Halls of game: Bingo centers are unheralded pillars of the Corpus Christi community

Clay Carpenter

December 23, 2020 |

Corpus Christi Caller Times |

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Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Corpus Christi, Texas

In Texas, bingo is considered a charitable operation and can act as a revenue source, offering a significant contribution to the funding of many 501c(3) nonprofits, but it also "nourishes the community in other, less obvious ways." Even before the coronavirus pandemic, the bingo operations around the state often provided scholarships and food distribution and offered a reprieve from social isolation. Although the pandemic has altered how many players can be a in a room together, the bingo halls are still attracting regulars.

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Comment la Maison bleue fait grandir les enfants autistes

Virginie Rabisse

December 23, 2020 |

Nice-Matin |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: France

Aujourd’hui, cependant seuls 20 % des enfants autistes sont scolarisés et près de 4.000 d’entre eux s’exilent en Belgique, faute de structure suffisante en France, assure l’association Autisme France.C’est à la fois pour répondre aux enjeux de diagnostic et d’accueil que la Maison bleue a ouvert ses portes à Sanary en 2016. Elle intervient en complément de l'école.

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Addressing the mental health plights of Swiss migrants

Svet Lustig

December 22, 2020 |

Geneva Solutions |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Switzerland

In parts of Switzerland and Sweden, mental health care professionals are working to implement culturally appropriate psychiatry services that better addresses the needs of migrant populations. Although acquiring funding for these specialized services can be a challenge, the approach has come to be a model throughout Europe and participants have reported positive feedback.

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Creating safer spaces for LGBTQ migrants of colour in Bremen

Stephanie Alvarez

December 22, 2020 |

The Local |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: Germany, Bremen

Queeraspora was founded in Bremen as a safe space for immigrant and refugee LGBTQ+ people to find social and emotional support, as well as access to information. Around twenty people make up the nucleus of the group, and they come from all over the world including Turkey, Taiwan, India, Bosnia, and South America. The meetings focus on personal empowerment, as well as political organizing and educational workshops. The mix of social and educational activities provides a network for people who experience homophobia among refugee and migrant communities and racism among mainstream LGBTQ+ communities.

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State effort seeks to counter mental health problems worsened by pandemic

Stephanie Casanova

December 22, 2020 |

This is Tucson |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Arizona

Resilient Arizona is a crisis counseling program that is funded by a federal grant and managed by the Crisis Response Network to mitigate the mental health effects of the pandemic. The crisis counseling is intended to help avoid progression of mental health concerns and the program is free and anonymous to all residents. Services are available in Spanish and English, with 23% of clients identifying as Latinx and Hispanic and 10% Spanish-speaking. After calling a help line, residents are connected to one of six contracted providers across the state. The program served 2,316 people from April to August 2020.

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