Fair and Just Prosecution

“When young people cause harm, we need to hold them accountable. But when we are responsive to what it is that is causing those behaviors, we can see those kids heal – and we can keep them out of the criminal justice system.” – Douglas County, GA District Attorney Dalia Racine The U.S. criminal legal system has failed effectively to address the unique challenges faced by children and teenagers for decades, devastating countless lives in the process. In the second video of our #ReformMakesUsSafer series, elected prosecutors and youth justice experts explain why we must treat kids as kids and invest in their success – not their punishment – to achieve healthier and safer communities. (Campaign for the Fair Sentencing of Youth, Delia Garza, Abd’Allah Lateef, Leesa Manion, King County Prosecuting Attorney's Office, Douglas County District Attorney's Office, Mark A. Dupree, Sr., Pima County Attorney's Office, John Choi)

Join FJP Deputy Director Amy Fettig, Environmental Activist Bill McKibben, Public Citizen Senior Climate Policy Counsel Aaron Regunberg, Union of Concerned Scientists, and other leading experts next week on Tuesday, June 4 at 3 p.m. ET for a virtual panel discussion exploring whether Big Oil companies should be criminally prosecuted for climate-related injuries and deaths. Register here: https://lnkd.in/er3rEG9n 

“I started thinking about, and experiencing, and being impacted by mass incarceration way before that term even existed. And way before I had any kind of political consciousness…. I just started thinking about how messed up it was for me and all those other kids.” In the latest episode of the WE GOT US NOW INC podcast, Chesa Boudin, Executive Director of the Criminal Law & Justice Center at the University of California, Berkeley - School of Law and former District Attorney of San Francisco, shared how his parents' incarceration shaped his outlook on justice and motivated him to advocate for kids impacted by the system. Hear more here: https://lnkd.in/eRCBE4Qp

“Even if the state could perform painless and anxiety-free executions and racial biases were eliminated, the death penalty would still be wrong…. Americans who favor capital punishment generally want it to be imposed, if at all, without factual error, pain, politics, prosecutorial overreach or racial bias. But that’s just fantasy. The death penalty is inextricably bound up with each of those ills, and more.” Research on the death penalty has proven that cases across the nation have routinely been infected by racial bias, constitutional violations, official misconduct, or political influence. Just last month, a federal judge ordered Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price to review 35 previous cases after her office found evidence that past prosecutors systematically excluded Black and Jewish people from juries hearing capital conviction cases. In this editorial, the Los Angeles Times Editorial Board explains how the death penalty is irreparably tainted, morally unjust, and why it must be ended. (Alameda County District Attorney's Office) https://lnkd.in/eiy4fY_Z 

FJP is honored to have been chosen as one of 30 finalists worldwide for the World Justice Project’s 2024 World Justice Challenge! Our efforts seek to underscore the critical role of elected prosecutors in protecting democracy, advancing free and fair elections, addressing threats to election integrity, and promoting public trust in the U.S. democratic process. Learn more here: https://lnkd.in/gFeQjpGM

FJP received an extraordinary $3 million gift from Yield Giving, a global philanthropic foundation created by benefactor MacKenzie Scott. The generous gift will be used to support FJP’s mission to promote a criminal legal system grounded in fairness, equity, compassion and fiscal responsibility through reforms within prosecutor's offices and across the broader criminal legal system. Yield Giving supports organizations that are committed to lifting up marginalized communities and driving positive change across the world, and we are proud to join their esteemed cohort of grantees. Their generous gift makes one thing clear: this movement isn’t slowing down. It is a signal that the demand for transformative change in our justice system is only growing. Learn more here: https://lnkd.in/ggPE_HU3

FJP is seeking a Communications Manager with a strong commitment to social justice and a desire to improve the U.S. criminal legal system by supporting reform-minded leaders across the nation. Ideal applicants have a demonstrated track record of success in building media relationships, managing social media and digital production, and juggling fast-moving projects. Learn more about the role and apply here:  https://lnkd.in/g59CGT3a

“Legal systems around the world have been complicit in some of the worst atrocities in human history, from slavery and Jim Crow in the United States to the mass genocide of the Holocaust in Europe. As a current elected prosecutor and a former federal prosecutor…we know firsthand how critical it is for every elected official to publicly recognize and address past injustices, while also combating new attempts to foster hate.” As ministers of justice for their communities, elected prosecutors wield incredible power to shape the lives of the people they serve – for better or worse. In the American Bar Association's criminal justice magazine, Albemarle County, VA Commonwealth’s Attorney Jim Hingeley and FJP Executive Director Miriam Krinsky explain why criminal justice leaders must reckon with past abuses of power and dedicate their work to defending the most vulnerable among us. https://lnkd.in/gtyWBaQz

The U.S. Supreme Court will soon decide whether to allow the state of Oklahoma to proceed with the execution of Richard Glossip. A host of stakeholders, including the state’s Attorney General, have argued that this case has been irreparably tainted by serious misconduct among both police and prosecutors. Yesterday, 32 criminal justice leaders across the country called on the Court to grant relief to Mr. Glossip and save him from being put to death: https://lnkd.in/gV6bGpw5

Indiana’s current civil asset forfeiture system allows for the appointment of private attorneys to prosecute civil asset forfeiture cases, for which they are paid on a contingency-fee basis – meaning that these individuals make more money for themselves as they confiscate more from others. This system, which is the only one of its kind across the country, creates a serious conflict of interest that erodes trust in the criminal legal system. That’s why today, 55 criminal justice leaders filed an amicus brief calling on a federal court to strike down the state’s statutory scheme, which undermines faith in the integrity of Indiana’s entire justice system and thereby endangers public safety. https://lnkd.in/dyVVq2k2