Stafford County, Virginia
Uncage RRJ is a 501(c)(4) nonprofit advocacy organization dedicated to transforming the Rappahannock Regional Jail (RRJ) into the Rappahannock Regional Restoration Center (3RC).
We work for de-incarceration and criminal justice reform in the Rappahannock region — Stafford, Spotsylvania, King George, and Fredericksburg — replacing punitive approaches with restorative ones through public records, public meetings, and organized community action.
Our framework is SCEW: Spiritual, Civil, Economic, and whole-body Wellness. A community is only as healthy as the people it locks away — and the people it welcomes home.
We sow seeds today to bear healthy fruit for our communities' futures.
Convert the Rappahannock Regional Jail into the Rappahannock Regional Restoration Center (3RC) — a facility measured by healing, not headcount.
Push evidence-based policy in Virginia's jail systems — and use the restorative tools already authorized under Virginia law, from pretrial services to specialty dockets.
Show the public what the jail costs and what it does. Every budget, audit, and death review we obtain, we publish and explain in plain language.
Monitor and document jail operations, deaths, audits, and inspections through FOIA and public records — and demand full public disclosure of every death investigation.
Challenge incarceration as the default answer. Activate the Community Criminal Justice Board our jurisdictions are already required by law to seat, and fund alternatives that keep families whole.
Rappahannock Regional Jail — 1745 Richmond Hwy, Stafford, VA 22554. Founded in 1968, it is the oldest and largest regional jail in the Fredericksburg area. Its FY27 budget request of $57.9 million is a $4.7 million (8.9%) increase over FY26 — paid by the taxpayers of our four member jurisdictions.
2022: 3 deaths — 2023: 4 deaths — 2024: 2 deaths. Nine deaths in custody over three years, one of the highest totals of any jail in Virginia per the state Board of Local and Regional Jails. Causes include natural causes, suicides, overdoses, and homicides. Regulatory violations cited in multiple death reviews — yet investigation details remain closed to the public.
Board of Local and Regional Jails inspection violations documented across multiple years. Most common citations include management of sharps, fire safety inspections, and inmate food service. 2024 annual inspection showed 97% compliance.
Uncage RRJ uses data, transparency, and persistent civic engagement to drive change.
FOIA requests for jail records. Public comment at Jail Authority Board meetings — and documentation when those meetings get cancelled. Line-by-line analysis of budgets, audits, and death reviews, published in plain language. Tracking criminal justice legislation in the General Assembly. Building coalitions with justice reform organizations and front-line ministries. Amplifying the voices of those impacted by incarceration — including through our anonymous reporting tool.
RRJ Annual Comprehensive Financial Reports. Budget requests and jurisdictional payments. Board of Local and Regional Jails death reviews, audits, and inspection reports. Rappahannock Regional Jail Authority agendas and meeting minutes. Virginia FOIA records. State Compensation Board data. Bills before the Virginia General Assembly.
Justice-impacted Stafford County resident, business owner, and community organizer. Uncage RRJ was built on lived experience and runs on documentation: public records, persistent questions, and receipts. Founder of MF Growth (AI and automation services), which powers the organization's grassroots, digital-first approach — research, records analysis, and storytelling rooted in the Rappahannock community.
Follow our work, attend public meetings, submit FOIA requests, and contact your elected officials in the four jurisdictions. Jail Authority Board meetings are open to the public and include a public comment period — check the official meeting schedule and show up. The board decides how over a thousand of our neighbors live. Your presence is the oversight.