Celebrating Equal Justice Under Law's Seventh Anniversary
Equal Justice Under Law is celebrating our seventh anniversary on March 24, 2021! Our longevity and success in the fight against wealth-based inequality in the justice system would not be possible without our generous supporters. Over the past seven years, we have affected change in 18 states, benefiting over three million people! Our team has tackled 38 cases and won all of them (that have come to resolution) through settlement, repeal of discriminatory laws, or victories in court.
The Covid-19 pandemic took a toll on our work, as it did for everyone, in 2020. Courts were completely closed at the beginning of the pandemic and in slower operation than usual once re-opened. Although many of our cases were slowed by the courts, we pivoted our efforts to quickly ensure that our clients would not be exposed to coronavirus while incarcerated.
In celebration of our anniversary, we are excited to share with you some of our successes over the past year that our supporters have made possible:
Fighting costly expungements: Expungement of an old conviction can be the difference between successful reintegration and an endless cycle of poverty. Although every state has some mechanism for expungement (often based on extremely restrictive criteria as to the type of crime and amount of time since conviction), some states, such as Louisiana, charge non-waivable fees to get a record expunged. These fees mean that only those with wealth are able to put their past behind them and get their records cleared, while those who are unable to pay the high fees are left with a record that continues to haunt them. Because criminal records are often the basis of discrimination by employers and landlords, the people who need expungements the most are also the people least likely to be able to afford fees. We are leading the first lawsuit of its kind on this issue in Louisiana, and we are currently investigating a similar lawsuit in Indiana.
Advocating for the release of unjustly held immigration detainees: We launched a lawsuit in New York that aims to relieve hundreds of people unjustly detained pending immigration proceedings. The class action lawsuit challenges the federal government’s policy of detaining individuals (who are not being charged with any criminal offense) for lengthy periods of time due to an inability to pay arbitrary and exorbitant bond fees. Bond is being set on detainees without consideration of ability to pay. This means that wealth-status is the sole determinant of whether someone is free or jailed prior to hearing. We have already won preliminary relief in this case and are hoping to extend our victory on a permanent basis to end this wealth-based discrimination.
Battling for voting rights re-enfranchisement: An estimated 5.2 million Americans are unable to vote because of their criminal record. Felony disenfranchisement, or the restriction of voting rights for individuals with a felony conviction, dates back to Jim Crow-era laws as states aimed to prevent people of color from voting. Almost all states allow some path to re-enfranchisement (and many make re-enfranchisement automatic upon release from prison). But some states charge fees or require payment of fines, effectively banning people experiencing poverty from getting their right to vote back. We have an ongoing lawsuit against the state of Tennessee to end this discriminatory practice, and we are continuing to identify other locations where we can make a difference in this space as well.
Fighting for Michael’s freedom: Our client Michael was sentenced to life in prison in 1993 for selling drugs to an undercover police officer during the height of the War on Drugs. We fought for Michael’s freedom and won – at 51 years old, he is free for the first time in over 27 years and has happily reunited with his family.
The cases above represent only a snapshot of our efforts and successes over the past year. Without support, we could not do this important work that is impacting so many lives. Thank you to all of you who have been on this journey with us. We cannot wait to see what changes we can make together in 2021.