Booker, Paul, Durbin, Lee, Lankford, and Casey
Renew Bipartisan Senate Push to Ban Juvenile Solitary Confinement
MERCY Act would bar solitary confinement of juveniles who are tried in federal system
Reps. Cummings and Love are leading renewal of companion effort in U.S. House
WASHINGTON, DC –U.S. Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) is leading the renewal of a bipartisan effort to pass legislation that would prohibit thesolitary confinement of juveniles who are tried in the federal system and held in pretrial facilities or juvenile detention facilities. Joining Booker to re-introduce the MERCY Act, first proposed in 2015, are Sens. Rand Paul (R-KY), Mike Lee (R-UT), Richard Durbin (D-IL), James Lankford (R-OK), and Bob Casey (D-PA). Reps. Elijah Cummings (D-MD-7) and Mia Love (R-UT-4) are leading the companion effort in the US House.
Sen. Booker said, “Solitary confinement is a cruel and demeaning violation of human dignity. When imposed on youth, it can cause serious long-term physical and psychological harm. If we want our criminal justice system to reflect our founding principles as a nation of liberty and justice for all, we must promote a more compassionate, common sense approach to rehabilitating young people who have lost their way.”
The solitary confinement of young people is a serious and widespread problem in the United States. Each day, in jails and prisons across America, youth under the age of 18 are held in solitary confinement often for weeks or months at a time. In 2011 alone, more than 95,000 youth were held in prisons and jails, and a significant number were held in solitary confinement. In 2013, the Department of Justice found that 47 percent of juvenile detention centers locked youth in solitary confinement for more than four hours at a time, and some held youth for up to 23 hours a day with no human interaction.
When subjected to solitary confinement, adolescents are often denied access to treatment and programming to meet their psychological, developmental, and rehabilitative needs. Because youths are still developing, solitary confinement often seriously harms their mental and physical health, as well as their development.
The Maintaining dignity and Eliminating unnecessary Restrictive Confinement of Youths Act (MERCY Act):
· Bans Juvenile Solitary Confinement. The MERCY Act bans the use of “room confinement” in juvenile facilities, except as a temporary response to a behavioral issue that poses serious and immediate risk to any individual.
· Requires Use of Less Restrictive Techniques. The bill ensures that before a juvenile is placed in room confinement, the staff member must use less restrictive techniques, including de-escalation techniques or discussions with a qualified mental health professional.
· Encourages Transparency. The bill mandates that the juvenile be informed of why the room confinement placement occurred and that release will occur upon regaining self-control or after a certain period of time in solitary confinement.
· Places Time Limits on Usage of Confinement. The Mercy Act limits solitary confinement on juveniles that pose a risk of harming others to no more than 3 hours and to juveniles who pose a risk of harm to themselves to no more than half an hour. It requires juveniles be removed from room confinement once the risk of harm subsides.
· Requires Post-Confinement Services. After the maximum periods of confinement expires, the bill mandates that juveniles be transferred to a facility where services can be provided.
The following organizations have supported the MERCY Act: National Juvenile Defenders Center, Juvenile Law Center, Campaign for Youth Justice, Campaign for Fair Sentencing of Youth, Justice for Families, Justice Policy Institute, National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges, National Disability Rights Network, National Juvenile Justice Network, The Sentencing Project, and Youth Sentencing and Reentry Project.
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Rejected by Hollywood Studios as “Too Clean” VidAngel Studios Debuts its First Theatrical Title: TIM TIMMERMAN, HOPE OF AMERICA
Coming of Age High School Comedy Available in Limited Theatrical Release March 3rd, with wider release planned nationwide as VidAngel Studios takes first step in offering original, family-friendly content to rabid fans
(Provo, UT—February 8, 2017) VidAngel, the market-leading entertainment platform empowering users to filter language, nudity, violence, and other content from movies and TV shows, has been engaged in a high profile legal battle with Disney, Warner Bros, 20th Century Fox, and Lucasfilm. These Hollywood studios are working to eviscerate the 2005 Family Movie Act and prevent VidAngel from lawfully empowering parents and families to filter content on modern devices.
In response to a court injunction temporarily preventing VidAngel from offering its core service, the company fast-tracked a new offering for its fans… original, family-friendly content through VidAngel Studios. Today, VidAngel Studios is proud to announce its very first theatrical offering, TIM TIMMERMAN, HOPE OF AMERICA.
“We announced VidAngel Studios in December, turning our focus to creating great content for the 40 percent of Americans who are actively looking for family-friendly entertainment; a group that is all too often overlooked by Hollywood. When Cameron Sawyer and his team showed us the movie, and told us that the big studios had turned it down because it’s too clean despite how hilarious it is, we immediately knew this was the right first project for us to get behind,” said Neal Harmon, CEO of VidAngel.
“We did not take lightly getting behind Sawyer’s comedic film because of the reputation that precedes us. One customer quipped, ‘the only problem with [VidAngel] ads is that they’re so good that I burned the evening watching ads instead of filtering a movie.’ We’re excited to rollout TIM TIMMERMAN with this limited theatrical release, and believe it’s going to be an instant cult classic. VidAngel is proud to take part in this amazing, coming-of-age story set in the 90s that has so much to say about our culture today.”
VidAngel Studios, Picture Picture Films, and Purdie Distribution are behind the exclusive, limited theatrical release of TIM TIMMERMAN, HOPE OF AMERICA on Friday, March 3, 2017. Rated PG-13, TIM TIMMERMAN will screen at select Megaplex and Cinemark Theatres throughout Utah initially, followed by a nationwide expansion.
TIM TIMMERMAN is a semi-autobiographical film about Director Cameron Sawyer’s (SHE’S A FOX) experiences as a student body president in Utah in the mid 90’s, and is loosely based on his experience as quite possibly the worst high school student body president in high school history (Orem High, Class of ’95). Test-screening audiences have described the film as “Ferris Bueller meets Napoleon Dynamite.”
The film has received incredible acclaim on the festival circuit, and screened as an Official Selection at the Academy Award®-qualifying Heartland Film Festival, winning Audience Choice for Best Picture at the St. Louis International Film Festival and Audience Choice for Best Comedy at the Woods Hole Film Festival in Cape Cod, among many other accolades. It is quite possibly the most successful festival film to come out of Utah made by a Utah filmmaker. TIM TIMMERMAN is produced by Sawyer, Courtney Sawyer, Cameron Earl, and Travis Morgan and distributed by Purdie Distribution.
Film Synopsis: Mount Vista High's student-body president Tim Timmerman (Eddie Perino, Disney’s LAB RATS) — class of 1994 — has aspirations of attending Yale and becoming a famous politician. Once elected as president, however, Tim has zero interest in doing any actual work: he simply coasts, believing that his student-body president title rubber stamps his future dreams. When Tim’s laziness and incompetence endanger his dreams, he realizes that a deaf student, Sydney (Chelsea Maidhof), could actually provide the easiest route to glory for Tim - her father’s position as a U.S. senator. Nothing will stop Tim from reaching the top…except himself.
See the trailer and learn more at: http://www.timtimmermanmovie.com/
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About VidAngel Studios
VidAngel Studios is a new venture from VidAngel, offering originally produced, family-friendly content for the values audience. In 2017, VidAngel Studios is offering original movies, a weekly, family-friendly Dry Bar Comedy Show, and other content based on VidAngel’s new Tip NOW technology that empowers users to tip artists and performers while they are watching.
About Picture Picture Films
Picture Picture Films is an award-winning production company focused on comedic feature films, theatrical shorts, and series. Its premier short film, SHE’S A FOX, starred Academy Award®-nominated actress Hailee Steinfeld (TRUE GRIT, THE EDGE OF SEVENTEEN), was featured in more than 60 film festivals worldwide, and garnered numerous awards.
About Purdie Distribution
Purdie Distribution is an independently-owned film distribution company known for releasing independent films nationwide. Established in 2011, Purdie Distribution led the distribution of SAINTS AND SOLDIERS: AIRBORNE CREED and THE VOID, THE SARATOV APPROACH, FREETOWN, MEET THE MORMONS, ONCE I WAS A BEEHIVE and is generally focused on films that elevate the human experience. Founder Brandon Purdie played a key roll in the establishment of the family and faith-based film market with his previous work on the release of SAINTS AND SOLDIERS, THE WORK AND THE GLORY trilogy, and FOREVER STRONG.
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Potential flooding that is forecast for your area can pose serious health risks. To help raise your audience’s awareness of steps they can take to protect their health during the severe weather, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services offers PSAs approved by public health experts.
Before the storm hits, people should know what to do if they encounter flooded streets while driving, how to prevent children from drowning, and what to do if prescription medicines upon which they rely may have come into contact with floodwater.
Here are three top PSAs that address these hazards:
· Encountering flooded streets: https://youtu.be/PHoW-zD6NRQ
· Preventing drowning: https://youtu.be/4EUHPzaf07I
· Prescription drugs and floodwater: https://youtu.be/OWt4wrGGok0
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The 2017 FloridaBikeWeekTV.com Internet TV NewsEventSimulcast.
Hello......
We are DaytonaBeach-Live.com
And We wanted to let you know, that we are
GearingUP NOW... For the Annual FloridaBikeWeekTV.com NewsEventSimulcast.
March 10th to 19th, 2017,
From Daytona Beach, Florida, USA.
The NewsEventSimulcast, will be broadcast Online again this year, on (5) Internet TV stations all at once.
for a SUPER worldwide Simulcast of the event
On... FloridaBikeWeekTV.com, DaytonaBeach-Live.com, GlobalWorldTV.com, SportsNetTV.com, and GlobalRoute66.com
For the FULL 10 Days and Nights of the event.
We are the Internet TV stations that have been broadcasting BikeWeek Worldwide online for 16 years running.
Last year we pulled in excess of 1 million worldwide / nationwide online viewers. For our initial broadcast, of the 75th anniversary of the event.... And more viewers, all year long in Re-runs etc..
This year we expect to double or triple those numbers. All Totally G-Rated, and suitable for Family viewing, from one of the worlds Largest Biker events. And one of the worlds Oldest Continuously Operating Internet TV networks. ( Broadcasting Online since 1998)
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Good afternoon,
The Fair Housing Program at the Disability Law Center (DLC) continues to use fair housing testing to protect vulnerable groups in Utah!
In December of 2016, the Fair Housing Team filed complaints against five Utah County property managers alleging discrimination based on source of income. These complaints were the result of a three-month investigation into possible discrimination relating to tenants with housing assistance. The DLC also recently filed two client-based complaints against landlords in Salt Lake County on the same basis. (Read our press release for more information about these complaints: http://disabilitylawcenter.org/wp-content/uploads2/2017/02/FY17-Fair-Housing-January-Press-Release.pdf).
To be able to keep conducting investigations like these, we need to recruit more testers!
Testers are the people who make our investigations possible by visiting or calling landlords to inquire about apartment. They then submit written reports about their experiences back to the DLC, which are analyzed for signs for discrimination. Testers receive a stipend for each completed test after attending a training session.
What we're looking for is a diverse group of people to use as testers. They don't have to belong to a particular protected class (race, disability, color, religion, etc.) to participate.
If you know of anyone who might be interested, they can fill out an application online by following this link to our website: http://disabilitylawcenter.org/job-posting-fair-housing-testers/
I can be reached at vmcguire@disabilitylawcenter.org or at 801-363-1347 ext. 3192 if you would like additional information about our Fair Housing Program or to answer questions you might have.
Thanks for any help you can give us!
-Vard
