Twenty states and the federal Bureau of Prisons currently detain over 6,000 people, mostly men previously convicted of sex offenses, in prison-like “civil commitment” facilities beyond the terms of their criminal sentence. They’re held – often indefinitely – “treatment” facilities after completing their criminal sentences, in a practice likened to “double jeopardy” or repeat punishment for the same crime.

Joining us to discuss this system will be the activist researcher, writer and editor Emma Peyton Williams.  She is the author of a new overview report for the Prison Policy Initiative on civil commitment facilities. Emma’s survey research was conducted with Inside Illinois Civil Commitment.

 

Emma Peyton Williams is an activist, researcher, and educator. Emma’s work focuses on the intersection of social services and the criminal punishment system.

Photo by Andy Li on Unsplash

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