NEW ORLEANS – Today, The Data Center is releasing the first in a series of reports they are calling “The New Orleans Index at Ten Collection,” highlighting changes post-Katrina.
Their first report, “Criminal Justice: Changing Course on Incarceration,” is contributed by Retired Judge Calvin Johnson, and Mathilde Laisne and Jon Wool of the Vera Institute of Justice.
The Data Center team found the tragedies caused by New Orleans’ levee failures gave rise to a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that community and government leaders are seizing to change course on incarceration.
Before Katrina, New Orleans incarcerated more people in its local jail than any city in the country. That’s no longer true, The Data Center found. The city has committed to a jail of no more than 1,438 beds—a dramatic improvement over the massive pre-storm jail, the study reveals.
Beyond the fiscally sound aspect of the jail developments, confronting incarceration practices is critical to building a criminal justice system capable of delivering just and fair results, The Data Center concluded.
Nationwide, the disparate impact of policing and incarceration practices on communities of color is front and center, The Data Center reports. “Changing Course on Incarceration,” documents New Orleans’ efforts toward promoting opportunities, not destabilizing lives. The report also explores the road ahead to fundamentally and sustainably change course on local incarceration.
