Incarcerated Women

Do financial obligations levied on current and former incarcerated people penalize the poor? A majority of people locked up are either poor or unemployed, prior to incarceration, according to the Prison Policy Initiative’s compilation of data from the Bureau of Justice Statistics. Fines, fees, and restitution payments pile up for many people leaving prison, making ...

What is society currently doing to rehabilitate the incarcerated? Abigail Blue is the former executive director of The Birth Attendants: Prison Doula Project, which closed over 5 years ago, saw the plight of incarcerated pregnant women on a daily basis, at the Washington Correctional Center for Women. She reflects on her experiences working with the incarcerated ...

The Sustainability In Prisons Project is just one of a number of programs available at Washington prisons to offer training and educational opportunities for inmates. You’ll listen to incarcerated women at the Washington Corrections Center for Women in Gig Harbor from 2015 describing their work in this program.   Photos by WCCW and Yuko Kodama Mini Greenhouse 2) ...

Relay for Life is an organization that organizes cancer walks, generating money to fight cancer. This donation fueled operation makes a positive impact on inmates who have choose to organize to fight cancer. Pamela Lorenz, an inmate at the Washington Correction Center for women,  participated in such a program while incarcerated and shares her experience ...

This KBCS series on Incarcerated Women takes a look at prison food. You’ll hear about how food is prepared at Washington Corrections Center for Women. KBCS’s Yuko Kodama spoke with inmates at Washington Correctional Center for Women about food preparation at the facility. “Got some Beef Stew from upstairs for lunch. I’m guessing this is what ...

Ever wonder what it would be like meet your prosecuting attorney after leaving prison? Check out this week’s segment of KBCS series on Incarcerated Women as KBCS’s Yuko Kodama speaks with Shontina Vernon, a local artist who was formerly incarcerated. Vernon shares her experience of meeting her prosecuting attorney after she served time as a ...

Listen to what it feels like to be a minor behind bars on our KBCS series on Incarcerated Women as KBCS’s Yuko Kodama speaks with Shontina Vernon, a local artist who was formerly incarcerated in Texas, at age 10. Producers: Yuko Kodama, Ruthie Bly Photo from Visionary Justice StoryLab Unknown Speaker 0:00 91.3 KBCS, music and ideas. Listener supported ...

Facing breast cancer is scary enough, but learning you have cancer while incarcerated comes with its own set of problems. Pamela Lorenz, an inmate in the Washington Correctional Center for women, found the lack of support groups and privacy as the most challenging parts of facing breast cancer in prison. She shares her story with ...

The KBCS series on Incarcerated Women takes a look at the impact of the prison system on local communities as KBCS’s Yuko Kodama speaks with Shontina Vernon, a local artist who was formerly incarcerated in Texas, at age 10.

Being pregnant is a vulnerable time for a woman. But Imagine the thought of going into labor while incarcerated and the thought of handing your newborn over to the foster care system? Abigail Blue is the former executive director of The Birth Attendants: Prison Doula Project, which closed over 5 years ago, saw the plight ...

Margerita Guzman is an inmate at Washington Correctional Center for Women in Gig Harbor who became locked up while pregnant. She shares her experience of giving birth behind bars and highlights issues mothers face while in the prison system with KBCS’s Yuko Kodama.  Producers Yuko Kodama and Ruth Bly  

Sheri Ramsey knows the hardships of a long prison sentence all too well. She’s serving a 25 year term at the Washington Corrections Center for Women. But she’s found hope and work training through the Prison Pet Partnership where she trains service dogs. Inmates also provide grooming and boarding services through the program. KBCS’s Yuko ...

KBCS begins a new weekly series on Incarcerated Women. The United States incarcerates more of its citizens than any other country in the world. Of the over 740,000 people incarcerated in the United States, well over 200,000  are women.  The effects on families, communities and taxpayers is pronounced. Over the next months KBCS takes a look ...