• Interchange, Spring 2008
• Advance Report - 2007
• Prisoner Visitation & Support - 2007
• Legislative Survey
• Committee Stuff

The Committee for Criminal and Restorative Justice consists of not fewer than six members nominated by the Nominating Committee and appointed by the Yearly Meeting. The purpose of the Committee is to address incarceration and criminal justice concerns, especially as they affect the treatment of offenders.

The Committee seeks to encourage prison ministry generally across the Yearly Meeting and helps Prisoner Visitation and Support to find volunteers to visit federal and military prisons. The Committee acts as the conscience of the Yearly Meeting on issues relating to prison concerns and the death penalty. The Committee also seeks to be a resource for Monthly Meetings by issuing notices on specific topics related to criminal justice, collecting information for a Yearly Meeting clearinghouse, and maintaining a speakers’ bureau on prison concerns and death penalty issues.

This Committee recommends to the Nominating Committee each year one person for appointment by the Yearly Meeting to serve on the Board of Directors of Prisoner Visitation and Support, which meets in Philadelphia two or three times a year.

From Manual of Procedure, July 2004, p19

Are you interested in the wellbeing of people in federal and military prisons? Would you be willing to visit prisoners once a month, or to represent Baltimore Yearly Meeting in an organization devoted to the welfare of prisoners? We are looking for a Friend to represent BYM on the Prisoner Visitation and Support Board of directors, which meets two or three times a year in Philadelphia. PVS is also looking for prison visitors. Training is available. Contact James Matsen at jmatsen@dplus.net or call 610-255-4562.

The Criminal and Restorative Justice Committee met three times during 2006, at Interim meetings in March at Baltimore, Stony Run Meeting, at Yearly Meeting Annual Sessions in August at James Madison University, Virginia, and at October Interim Meeting at Baltimore, Homewood Meeting. The March meeting was attended by 20 committee members and visitors; the August meeting by 12 committee members and visitors; and the October meeting by 11 committee members and visitors. These numbers include Friends who serve as members of the corresponding committee, contributing their presence and wisdom when Interim Meeting occurs near their homes and adding to the Committee's discussions in email.

During the March meeting, the Committee wrestled with issues concerning sexual offenders in Meetings during a long and deeply felt discussion. A few committee members advocated sponsorship of paroled offenders into Meetings, other Friends expressed concern for the safety and wellbeing of all members of Meetings that the parolees might attend, and still other Friends sought a middle ground that would respect Quaker traditions of openness as well as safety. The issue of how such sponsorship of offenders might affect insurance for Meetings was also noted. The Committee was unable to reach unity upon any of the issues that were raised.

Also in March, the Committee received information on national legislation affecting prisoners (House Resolution 3035 and Senate bill 1088), changes in habeas corpus appeals (HR 3199), the Federal Death Penalty Abolition Act (S 122 and HR 4923), from Kit Mason. Joan Anderson presented information from Citizens United for Rehabilitation of Errants, a grass roots organization dedicated to reducing crime through reform of the criminal justice system, concerning monitoring people who have committed crimes against children or sexual offenses. James Matsen reported on the work of Prisoner Visitation and Support, which organizes, seeks, and trains visitors for federal and military prisons nationwide. Bill Miles spoke about visiting Native American prisoners at Petersburg, Cumberland, and other prisons.

In August at Yearly Meeting Annual Sessions, the Committee received information on the newly proposed Enemy Combatant Military Commissions Act of 2006, which would eliminate habeas corpus protection for anyone considered an "enemy combatant" -- giving judges the ability to imprison people based on hearsay, without access to attorneys and without the right to be present at their trials or hear the charges against them. At the time it was unclear if this would become part of a presidential executive order or if it would go through Congress as a bill in the usual fashion. The Friends Committee on National Legislation was studying the bill and working on approaches to mitigate its severity. After some discussion, the Committee approved the following minute, which was later approved by Yearly Meeting:

"The Committee supports the Friends Committee on National Legislation to study and advise Friends on the Enemy Combatant Military Commissions Act of 2006."

Committee members heard a report from Susan Rose on a new Meeting for Worship with prisoners in Hagerstown, Maryland, the South Mountain Friends Fellowship. Friends were much encouraged in hearing of this. Elsewhere, Peter Folger said therapy was being offered in homes through Friendly Adult Presence training, and described how restorative justice methods were used to work toward reconciliation in a situation where two girls had been attacked by a gang of 40 other girls. The legislative update for this meeting included information on the status of the bills mentioned earlier, as well as the recently enacted Children's Safety and Violent Crimes Reduction Act, which included restrictions on parolees who had committed sex offenses.

Copies of Prison Journal, works by inmates collected by Jack Fogarty and John Worley, were made available to all. Both Prison Journal and the Committee had table exhibits in the bookstore to help Friends become more familiar with their work.

Also during Yearly Meeting, committee member Bette Hoover led a workshop entitled, "Restorative Dialogue: Nonviolent Communication that Works", which was well received.

In September, the Committee and Prison Journal took part in the First D.C. Taste of Justice Fair, presenting exhibits on their work and staffing tables for a day. The event included about 40 individuals and organizations working to help people who are dealing with the criminal justice system. Kit Mason and Jean Jones staffed the Committee's table, John Worley staffed the Prison Journal table. Later in the season, Bette Hoover attended the first Maryland Restorative Justice Conference in November at Howard Community College.

At the Committee's October meeting, Friends discussed guidelines for correspondence with prisoners and sought further guidance on how it might be done in order to combine Friendly contact with safety. The Committee also reconsidered its budget, which has for many years been spent primarily as the Yearly Meeting's contribution to Prisoner Visitation and Support, with only a fraction left to cover the Committee's needs. The Committee united to ask Yearly Meeting to make the Prisoner Visitation and Support donation a line item in its own budget, and proposed that the Committee receive a separate annual budget, the details of which were to be worked out later. This was brought before Interim Meeting and sent to Stewardship and Finance Committee.

Respectfully submitted,
Kit Mason, clerk

Prisoner Visitation and Support volunteers have been visiting prisoners in the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) for 39 years. . The organization was started originally to visit Viet Nam war resisters held in federal prisons., Bob Horton, a Methodist preacher, and Fay Honey Knopp, a Quaker activist, founded PVS in 1968 with the help and cooperation of the American Friends Service Committee, the Central Committee for Conscientious Objectors, Fellowship of Reconciliation, National Interreligious Service Board for Conscientious Objectors, and the War Resisters League. Presently sponsors of PVS are some thirty religiously affiliated organizations and social change agencies. Baltimore Yearly Meeting is one of three Quaker organizations supporting this work; the others are the American Friends Service Committee and Philadelphia Yearly Meeting.

Originally, PVS visited CO’s and war resisters dealing with the war in Viet Nam. As we moved farther away from Viet Nam it became apparent that other federal prisoners needed visits and support The focus of PVS is to visit people who do not have family and friends, who need supportive human contact, who are in solitary confinement or who are serving long sentences. Visitors receive training and must commit themselves to visiting once a month. The visitors allow the prisoners to choose the topics for discussion.

Each year Baltiimore Yearly Meeting supports PVS financially, and also appoints a Friend to serve on the PVS board of directors. Criminal and Restorative Justice Committee suggests a Friend's name to Nominating Committee, which brings the nominee to Yearly Meeting for approval. Victor Kauffman was BYM's appointed board member for many years. Currently James Matsen ( Nottingham ) is the BYM board member since 2004 and is seeking reappointment at annual sessions 2007. The PVS board meets twice a year at Friends Center in Philidelphia, where PVS also rents its office space.

Submitted by James Matsen

Kit Mason, Takoma Park Friends Meeting, kitmason@gmail.com

• Streamlined Procedures Act of 2005, H.R.3035 and S.1088 -- no action
• Federal Death Penalty Abolition Act, H.R. 4293 or S. 122 -- no action

The Military Commissions Act of 2006, S. 3930 ENR (as passed by both houses of Congress and signed by President Bush, Oct. 17, 2006.) The full text is available online at http://Thomas.loc.gov by searching on 'Military Commissions Act' or 'S 3930 ENR'. Several months ago the US Supreme Court declared that President Bush's military courts to try detainees were unconstitutional. This is his response. Highlights of the MCA:

The MCA establishes appointed five-member military commissions to try ' unlawful enemy combatants' under rules different from both criminal law and the Uniform Code of Military Justice used in courts martial. Any commissioned officer in the armed forces may serve on a military commission 'at the request of the Secretary of Defense or any officer designated for that purpose' -- in short, any military officer asked to convene a commission may do so. Judges on the commissions must be members of the bar of a federal court or the highest court of a state and must be qualified to be a military judge under the UCMJ.

"Enemy combatants" are not just the people in Guantanamo or other military prisoners related to recent conflicts. According to the law, the President, Secretary of Defense or their designees can declare someone to be an enemy combatant if that person is considered to have 'purposefully and materially supported hostilities against the United States'. Since this Administration has been outspoken in saying that protesters, individuals and organizations working for peace are siding with terrorists or aiding terrorists, it is possible that peaceamakers or protesters could be arrested as enemy combatants on the grounds that their opposition to the war 'gives aid and comfort to the enemy.'

Under the MCA, 'alien unlawful enemy combatants' may not invoke the Geneva Convention Common Article 3 as a source of rights. This is the article that forbids inhumane treatment or torture of prisoners. The law also specifically exempts from blame, punishment or accountability anyone who mistreated prisoners before it was enacted, so that people who were mistreated cannot later bring lawsuits.

Torture and coercion can be used to obtain evidence during interrogation, and this evidence will be used in court. Hearsay evidence can be allowed by a judge. Evidence obtained through searches without warrants or other permission will be allowed. The commission can sentence an "enemy combatant" to death based on this evidence.

The MCA removes the right to habeas corpus. Defendants may be imprisoned indefinitely without being charged. If the commission considers the evidence against them to be "classified information",they may not appear in court, may not hear the charges against them and may not have the opportunity to face their accusers and defend themselves. This applies not only to 'enemy combatants' but to people who are being held before their status has been determined.

Defendants can't challenge their imprisonment in civilian courts until after they are tried and sentenced -- and since there's no requirement for a speedy trial, they could be imprisoned for years without legal recourse, without access to an attorney, without family or friends knowing where they are.

Even after the commission is finished, details of the trial could be kept secret in a classified annex if the president wants that done.

The accused person is to be informed of the charges in English; any language that the accused person might understand is to be used only 'if appropriate'. There is no requirement to provide translators.

Legal challenges to the MCA:

The Center for Constitutional Rights has filed a habeas corpus petition on behalf of 25 detainees held at Bagram Air Force Base in Afghanistan without charges or trial. The suit is Mohammed v. Rumsfeld. About 500 men are being detained at Bagram, some for years, and none have received a hearing of any kind. Two Afghan detainees died there of physical abuse in December 2002.