Washington
Vera works with government and community partners across the country to advance research, analyze policy, pilot programs, and implement solutions on the ground. Working on nearly 60 projects in 40 states, Vera is committed to developing solutions to the most pressing injustices of our day. This page encompasses all of Vera’s work in Washington, and any related news coverage.
Related Work
Justice Fines and Fees
People trapped in the criminal justice system are typically poor and struggling to provide basic necessities for themselves and their families. Yet an arrest can lead to many and varied fines, fees, and court costs resulting in a bill of hundreds or even thousands of dollars. Vera’s Justice Fines and Fees Project will explore just how much fine and ...
Project
Chris Mai
People in Jail in 2019
Researchers from the Vera Institute of Justice, with support from Google.org Fellows, collected data on the number of people in local jails at midyear in both 2018 and 2019 to provide timely information on how incarceration is changing in the United States. This report fills a gap until the Bureau of Justice Statistics releases its report on jail p ...
A Piece of the Puzzle
State Financial Aid for Incarcerated Students
Postsecondary education in prison puts people on a path toward a brighter future by disrupting the cycle of poverty and incarceration. But it has not been offered at scale due to the numerous barriers—including the 1994 ban on Pell Grants to people in prison—that prevent students and postsecondary institutions from accessing state and federal fundi ...
Safe Prisons, Safe Communities
From Isolation to Dignity and Wellness Behind Bars
Vera is working to end the use of restrictive housing (also called solitary confinement or segregation) by partnering with states and local corrections agencies to implement safe and effective alternative strategies. Increasing evidence shows that restrictive housing—where people are held in a cell for 22-24 hours per day—is harmful to incarcerated ...
Project
Sara Sullivan
Closing the Distance
The Impact of Video Visits on Washington State Prisons
For people who are incarcerated, separation from family and friends is a difficult fact of life, as are the financial and logistical barriers that keep their loved ones from visiting them in prison. Because research has shown that contact with loved ones is a critical factor in improving outcomes for incarcerated people returning home, prison syste ...
Video Visits in Prisons Enhance Connections, But at a Cost
Here at Vera, we decided to investigate the impact of introducing video visits in one state prison system, and found just how much potential is being missed. We partnered with Washington State Department of Corrections, where people who are incarcerated have been able to access video visits since 2013. The service, provided by JPay, allows users to ...
Blog Post
Léon Digard
Collaborating with Local Governments and Communities to Reduce Jail Populations
Vera is helping cities and counties around the country reduce their jail populations. Vera works collaboratively with county government, law enforcement, and community organizations to study their jail usage and population growth and to provide recommendations for safely reducing the population while creating more fair and effective local justice ...
Opening Doors to Public Housing
Expanding Access for People with Conviction Histories
Access to safe, affordable housing is essential to the success of people in reentry and their families. For people leaving prison or jail or those with conviction histories who want to reunify with their family members in public housing or apply for housing themselves, admissions criteria can be a serious barrier. Federal guidelines leave many poli ...
Project
Margaret diZerega
Equal Access for People with Disabilities
People with disabilities experience violence at much higher rates than people without disabilities. In 2013 alone, 1.3 million violent crimes were committed against people with disabilities. Yet, people with disabilities face significant barriers to reporting their victimization—their accounts are often dismissed or not taken seriously—as well as u ...
Project
Nancy Smith
Status Offense Reform Center
Providing community-based alternatives to court and juvenile justice system involvement
Every year, thousands of kids are brought to court or even placed in locked facilities for misbehaviors like truancy, running away, and curfew violations—also known as status offenses—which are only illegal for kids under the age of 18. While these behaviors can be typical in adolescence, they can also be symptomatic of underlying issues at home or ...
Project
Krista Larson
Safety and Justice Challenge
Reducing the Overuse of Jails
The Safety and Justice Challenge is an initiative of the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation to reduce mass incarceration by changing the way America thinks about and uses jails. As part of the initiative, a network of competitively selected local jurisdictions are developing and modeling effective ways to reduce the misuse of jail. Vera ...
Project
Elizabeth Swavola
College in Prison
Postsecondary education opportunities for incarcerated people
Research suggests that education is key to improving many long-term outcomes for incarcerated people, their families, and their communities—including reducing recidivism and increasing employability and earnings after release. To improve the lives of incarcerated people and decrease the collateral consequences of incarceration, Vera works nationwid ...
Project
Margaret diZerega