Starting this month, people inside Ohio鈥檚 prisons will get more access to local journalism on criminal justice.
The Marshall Project, that covers the U.S. criminal justice system, distributes its magazine to correctional institutions across the country. In Ohio, it鈥檚 adding a local news insert called that will cover everything from bail reform in Cuyahoga County to analysis of sentence reductions in the state.
And while the stories are reported , they鈥檒l be circulated into 44 facilities across Ohio 鈥� all of its state prisons, nine county jails, four private prisons and three juvenile facilities 鈥� three times a month.
Louis Fields, outreach manager, said the stories and investigations not only serve as a bridge to the outside world, they show incarcerated individuals that their stories are worthy of coverage.
鈥淚t鈥檚 tied to who you are as a human being. We all need to be connected. We all need to be heard,鈥� he said.
Limited access
While many of Ohio鈥檚 prisons have tablets with access to national news, Fields said there鈥檚 few avenues for reading local news while incarcerated. For many, that means not being able to stay up to date with what鈥檚 happening in their local communities.
鈥淵ou care about where you come from,鈥� Fields said. 鈥淚f I鈥檓 from Cuyahoga County and I鈥檓 in a prison that鈥檚 two, three hours away, I want to hear about things that are affecting my county, where my family lives, where the people that I care about live. And also, if I鈥檓 fighting for my freedom, where the courts are making decisions in my local jurisdiction.鈥�
Fields said The Marshall Project is also working to ensure that the magazine is serving the needs of people inside prison. Reporters from the publication recently toured Grafton Correctional Institution in Lorain County to ask the men in the facility what topics matter most to them.
The publication鈥檚 investigations also work to hold institutions within the criminal justice system accountable.
鈥淚f there鈥檚 injustice going on and I need help and I don鈥檛 have the power, I need someone to step in. The Marshall Project provides that intervention,鈥� Fields said.
A 鈥榞ame changer鈥�
Fields spent 23 years of his life inside Ohio鈥檚 prisons. He said if he were to have access to The Marshall Project鈥檚 Ohio-based stories and investigations, it would have been transformational for him.
鈥淚t would have moved me so much faster and so much closer to me becoming the person I wanted to be,鈥� he said. 鈥淧rison separates you from society. So The Marshall Project 鈥� it鈥檚 like breath to a man that has asthma.鈥�
The local coverage also has the potential to help prepare incarcerated individuals to reenter society. Field said it鈥檚 imperative that people in prison are able to stay informed, so when they are released into the world, they have the knowledge and resources to reintegrate into their communities.
鈥淲hen you do 23 years, you miss a lot,鈥� Fields said. 鈥淪o when you return back to society, you want to be timely 鈥� to be effective and to be able to be useful in society.鈥�