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Posts published in “Day: May 10, 2022”

County votes $4 million for Youth crime prevention

May 10, 2022

Funds targeted to groups that help at-risk kids

Harris County announces a Youth Reinvestment Fund to engage at-risk youth to prevent crime before it happens; to Support the work of grassroots organizations to zero in and eliminate root causes of gun violence and crime.

Judge Hidalgo joined Commissioner Rodney Ellis and other local leaders last week to announce another new initiative aimed at reducing crime across Harris County.

Approved by Harris County Commissioners Court in April, the $4 million Youth Reinvestment Fund will prevent crime, including violent gun crime, before it happens by supporting local organizations who engage at-risk youth and support strategies proven to divert young people away from the criminal justice system.

Research consistently demonstrates that investing in early childhood intervention among at-risk youth effectively decreases the likelihood of young people becoming adult offenders later on in life and saves taxpayer dollars in the long run.

Continue reading...County votes $4 million for Youth crime prevention

United States moves Griner status to priority

May 10, 2022

Nimitz HS star in Russian prison; WNBA teams show support

WASHINGTON – The Biden administration has determined that WNBA star Brittney Griner is being wrongfully detained in Russia, meaning the United States will more aggressively work to secure her release even as the legal case against her plays out, the State Department said.

“The U.S. government will continue to undertake efforts to provide appropriate support to Ms. Griner,” the department said.

Griner was detained at an airport in February after Russian authorities said a search of her bag revealed vape cartridges containing oil derived from cannabis. Since then, U.S. officials had stopped short of classifying the Phoenix Mercury player as wrongfully detained and said instead that their focus was on ensuring that she had access in jail to American consular affairs officials.

Now, though, U.S. officials have shifted supervision of her case to a State Department section — the Office of the Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs — that is focused on negotiating for the release of hostages and other Americans classified as being wrongfully detained in other countries. A consular officer did visit in March.

“Brittney has been detained for 75 days and our expectation is that the White House do whatever is necessary to bring her home,” said Griner’s agent, Lindsay Kagawa Colas.

Continue reading...United States moves Griner status to priority