RESOURCES

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BOOKS:

The front book cover of “Deaf People in the Criminal Justice System: Selected Topics on Advocacy, Incarceration and Social Justice” depicts a blue outlined person dissolving into hundreds of birds in flight on a black background.

“The legal system is complex, and without appropriate access, many injustices can occur. Deaf people in the criminal justice system are routinely denied sign language interpreters, videophone access, and other accommodations at each stage of the legal process. The marginalization of deaf people in the criminal justice system is further exacerbated by the lack of advocates who are qualified to work with this population. Deaf People in the Criminal Justice System: Selected Topics on Advocacy, Incarceration, and Social Justice is the first book to illuminate the challenges faced by deaf people when they are arrested, incarcerated, or navigating the court system. This volume brings interdisciplinary contributors together to shed light on both the problems and solutions for deaf people in these circumstances.

The contributors address issues such as accessibility needs; gaps regarding data collection and the need for more research; additional training for attorneys, court personnel, and prison staff; the need for more qualified sign language interpreters, including Certified Deaf Interpreters who provide services in court, prison, and juvenile facilities; substance use disorders; the school to prison nexus; and the need for advocacy. Students in training programs, researchers, attorneys, mental health professionals, sign language interpreters, family members, and advocates will be empowered by this much-needed resource to improve the experiences and outcomes for deaf people in the criminal justice system.

Debra Guthmann is a nationally recognized lecturer, administrator, researcher, educator, and advocate with over forty years of extensive experience in service to the Deaf community.

Gabriel I. Lomas is a professor of counseling in the Department of Education and Educational Psychology at Western Connecticut State University in Danbury, CT.

Damara Goff Paris is an associate professor of counselor education and co-coordinator of the clinical counseling program at Emporia State University in Emporia, Kansas.

Gabriel A. “Tony” Martin was Chair of the Department of Deaf Studies and Deaf Education at Lamar University for over twenty years.”

-Gallaudet Press

ARTICLES:

Side lit hands against a black background sign in ASL. The left hand is red and blurry symbolizing motion in the language.

Without Interpreters, California’s Deaf Prisoners Are Getting Stuck Behind Bars

“It’s the utmost violation of due process I can think of.”
— SAMANTHA MICHAELS, Reporter

Prisoners With Physical Disabilities Are Forgotten And Neglected in America
-By Jamelia Morgan, Arthur Liman Fellow , the ACLU National Prison Project

A dark blue hand reaches up toward the sky in front of a chain link fence as the sun sets with orange, purple, and pink hues in the background.
Staring through the circles of a barbed-wire fence as it runs down the line in front of a concrete prison during sunrise casting blue and purple tones on the prison. A mountain range is visible in the background.

Police, courts, jails, and prisons all fail disabled people

“Disabled people are overrepresented in all interactions with the criminal justice system, and at all points, the system is failing them.”
— Elliot Oberholtzer

ORGANIZATIONS:

What are Centers for Independent Living?

“Designed and operated by individuals with disabilities, Centers for Independent Living (CILs) provide independent living services for people with disabilities for people with all types of disabilities. CILs are at the core of ACL's independent living programs, which work to support community living and independence for people with disabilities across the nation based on the belief that all people can live with dignity, make their own choices, and participate fully in society. These programs provide tools, resources, and supports for integrating people with disabilities fully into their communities to promote equal opportunities, self-determination, and respect.

List of Centers for Independent Living and State Plan for Independent Living by State

Find the State Plan for Independent Living (SPILs) and Centers for Independent Living (CILs) for each state and territory in the U.S. listed alphabetically by abbreviated state name.”

-Administration for Community Living

National Association of the Deaf is "to preserve, protect and promote the civil, human and linguistic rights of deaf and hard of hearing people in the United States of America."
While it works for Deaf people, it also works to promote knowledge about the rights, culture, and language of Deaf people to hearing people.

Greater Los Angeles Agency on Deafness, Inc. (GLAD) provides a variety of services intended to improve the quality of life for deaf, hard of hearing,
deaf-blind, and deaf disabled individuals.