life
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The night before a visit isn’t relaxing. It’s preparation. I get gas so I don’t have to stop in the morning. I make sure I have a roll of coins because we’ll be eating out of the prison vending machines. No outside food allowed. No forgotten change. Everything has to be planned. The day of…
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We hear a lot about life on the inside. The routines, restrictions, loss of freedom. What we do not talk about nearly enough is life on the outside, the sentence families serve without ever standing in a courtroom. For years, I was one of those people who believed, “Well, if you do the crime, you…
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The jury system is often described as the gold standard of democratic justice. Under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, individuals charged with serious offences have the right to be tried by a jury of their peers. The idea sounds fair: twelve ordinary citizens, neutral and impartial, deciding whether the Crown has proven guilt beyond…
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Institutions love frameworks. There are policies, procedures, operational directives, case management plans, reintegration models, rehabilitation pathways. On paper, everything works. There is a flow chart for progress. A form for every request. A policy for every complaint. A designated staff member for every concern. But inside, the framework often does not work for the inmate.…
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There is a unique kind of fear that comes from not hearing from someone you love who is in prison. It is not loud. It doesn’t scream. It sits quietly in your chest and tightens every time your phone buzzes, and it isn’t them. When someone you love is incarcerated, communication becomes your lifeline. A…
