Despite being ranked as one of the safest states in the country, Idaho has the highest rate of incarcerated women in the U.S.
This fact was detailed in a recent report from the Idaho Justice Project, highlighting that while there are many pathways to prison, getting out and staying out can be much harder.
Which is why community programs like the one offered by the Boise Bicycle Project are so important.
For a few years now, the nonprofit has partnered with the Idaho Department of Correction for Shifting Gears, a program that gives female inmates a chance to learn new skills by fixing bikes and giving back to kids in need, while also building community ties. And now BBP is expanding this program.
Devin McComas, the executive director of the Boise Bicycle Project, and Erica Marshall, executive director of the Idaho Justice Project, joined Idaho Matters to talk more about the work they’re doing and the state of women's incarceration in Idaho.
