Prison

Recidivism rates in the U.S. are some of the highest in the world. And in Wyoming, 33 percent of inmates are back in prison within the first year. But studies show that animal therapy can help reduce that by teaching things like responsibility, nonviolence and empathy. Wyoming has a special program – one of only five in the country – that teaches inmates how to tame wild horses.

An Associated Press investigation into prison labor in the United States found that prisoners who are hurt or killed on the job are often being denied the rights and protections offered to other American workers. These prisoners are being placed in dangerous jobs, sometimes with little or no training.

The ACT Human Rights Film Festival kicks off in Fort Collins next week and In The NoCo is highlighting some notable selections. Today we talk with the co-director of How We Get Free. The film examines the cash bail system in Colorado and beyond, and one activist-turned-lawmaker who’s been trying to change it.

Advocates are sounding the alarm about staffing shortages in Colorado prisons. In a recent survey of 400 incarcerated Coloradans, the vast majority said those shortages have had serious consequences. We learn more today on In The NoCo.

Colorado is one of the first states to employ an incarcerated professor. Today on In The NoCo, we learn why this move could be so impactful.

Inside Wire launched to widespread acclaim in the Spring of 2022. This summer, it quietly ceased production after an agreement between the University of Denver and the Department of Corrections expired.

Nearly 75% of Colorado’s prisons are vulnerable to climate-related hazards, but most of these prisons are not prepared for it, according to research from the University of Colorado-Boulder.

Solitary confinement intensifies problems for incarcerated people. It also changes the Colorado therapists who send them there. Loopholes, safety concerns and a lack of alternatives to solitary confinement mean Colorado clinicians in jails and prisons face ethical and moral dilemmas daily.

A new report shows the overrepresentation of Native Americans and Alaska Natives in state prison systems, and some of the greatest disparities, are in the Mountain West.

We caught up with our colleagues at the Colorado Sun this week to find out what stories are crossing their reporting desks. Sun editor Larry Rickman joined KUNC's Beau Baker to talk through some of the news they're following.