Looking into inequities of Maryland's incarceration rates

Ten years ago, when police chased Freddie Gray on the streets of Sandtown and arrested him, more people from his neighborhood were in state custody than from any other census tract in Maryland. That, according to data analyzed by the Justice Policy Institute and the Prison Policy Initiative. Their latest count shows things have changed only slightly: The Justice Policy Institute’s most recent data show Sandtown-Winchester and nearby Harlem Park rank no. 3 in the number of residents incarcerated -- although by rate, per 100-thousand people, Sandtown is still No. 1 in Maryland. That detail is part of the picture as public officials and criminal-justice reformers work to implement reforms proposed this spring by the Maryland Equitable Justice Collaborative. Its work is premised on statistics that show Black people make up roughly 30% of Maryland’s population, but they are 51% of its adult arrests, and 71% of its prisoners and parolees. We talk with Maryland Public Defender Natasha Dartigue to learn more.