Posted on December 14, 2017
CONTACT: Atlee Reilly207.626.2774, Ext. 220 (O)areilly@drme.org FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE December 14, 2017 AUGUSTA – Today, Maine’s Juvenile Justice Advisory Group (JJAG) released the results of a conditions assessment of the Long Creek Youth Development Center (LCYDC). This assessment was completed by the Center for Children's Law and Policy, which is nationally recognized as having expertise in assessing juvenile detention facilities. Experts in the fields of education, mental health treatment for adolescents, and medical treatment of adolescents reviewed thousands of documents and spent three days at Long Creek interviewing administrators, staff and residents. DRM believes the significant concerns identified in this ...Read More
Posted on August 14, 2017
Now having passed the 27th anniversary of the signing of a consent decree setting out mandated reforms to Maine’s mental health service system, the state still appears to be moving incrementally toward the desired outcome. A progress report issued this month by the court-appointed monitor for the agreement stated that “progress is being made, although haltingly at times.” Areas that have shown improvement, according to retired Maine Supreme Judicial Court Chief Justice Daniel Wathen as well as advocates interviewed by MHW, include reductions in waiting lists for certain services as well as the provision of needed housing assistance for ...Read More
Posted on August 09, 2017
PRESS RELEASE CONTACT: Katrina Ringrose207.319.8334 (C)kringrose@drme.org FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 9, 2017 Disability Rights Maine Report Highlights Concerns Regarding the Use of Law Enforcement Intervention by Youth Residential Service Providers AUGUSTA – Earlier today, Disability Rights Maine (DRM) released a report entitled Assessing the Use of Law Enforcement by Youth Residential Service Providers. The report is available here: Read the Report (PDF) Read the Report (Word) DRM began researching the use of law enforcement by youth residential service providers after a report by the Maine Department of Corrections found that as of July 2016, approximately one ...Read More
Posted on August 01, 2017
As Maine Gov. Paul LePage moves forward with plans to build a privately run, state psychiatric residence in Bangor without legislative approval, lawmakers have released their own proposal that calls for a residential, step-down facility in the Capitol Area of Augusta. The executive and legislative proposals would house residents who have been ruled by the courts to not be responsible for their crimes due to a mental illness. LePage has released a request for proposal (RFP) through the Maine Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS). The RFP says the 21-bed building would be completed by March 2019, with a ...Read More
Posted on April 19, 2017
CONTACT: Ben Jones 207.626.2774207.200.5407bjones@drme.org AUGUSTA – Earlier today, Disability Rights Maine (DRM) released a report entitled “RESTRAINT AND SECLUSION IN MAINE SCHOOLS, Reviewing the First Four Years of Data Required by MDOE Rule Chapter 33.” Chapter 33 Report (Word) Chapter 33 Report (PDF) Collection of restraint and seclusion data by Maine Department of Education (MDOE) began in 2013 after a consensus based rulemaking effort to develop rules regulating the use of these practices. The resulting rule is commonly referred to as “Chapter 33”. These regulations define restraint and seclusion as emergency interventions that may only be used when there is ...Read More
Posted on March 16, 2017
A new report from USM’s Muskie School of Public Service details a records system that is confusing, misunderstood and often unintentionally punishes individuals long after their time in the justice system has ended. Nationally, research into the impact of juvenile records on individuals’ attempts to move beyond their involvement with the justice system has demonstrated a range of long-term consequences, from difficulty in securing housing or employment to enlisting in the military and Maine is no different. The report’s authors conducted focus groups, interviews and surveys of youth and adults with juvenile records, family members, juvenile justice practitioners, and ...Read More
Posted on February 08, 2017
Click the link below to read / listen to Maine Public's report of this joint investigation. ...Read More
Posted on February 07, 2017
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 7, 2017 CONTACT: Rachel Healy, ACLU of Maine, 774-5444 x2 or 409-5509Atlee Reilly, Disability Rights Maine, 626-2774 x220Courtney Beer, Kids Legal at Pine Tree Legal Assistance, 400-3269 Lewiston –The Lewiston School Department has failed to adequately serve students of color and students with disabilities, according to the ACLU of Maine, Disability Rights Maine and Kids Legal at Pine Tree Legal Assistance. In a letter to the superintendent of the Department, the groups shared the results of a two-year-long investigation into race and disability accommodations in the Lewiston schools. According to the letter, the Department is in ...Read More
Posted on January 20, 2017
From ACLU.org: "This report provides a first-ever national ACLU account of the suffering prisoners with physical disabilities experience in solitary confinement. It spotlights the dangers for blind people, Deaf people, people who are unable to walk without assistance, and people with other physical disabilities who are being held in small cells for 22 hours a day or longer, for days, months, and even years. Solitary confinement is a punishing environment that endangers the well-being of people with physical disabilities and often violates the Americans with Disabilities Act. The report’s revelations about the particular harms of solitary on people with physical ...Read More
