Equal Justice Initiative of Alabama (EJI) & The Juvenile Justice Project of Louisiana (JJPL) came in at #7 on the list.
Equal Justice Initiative of Alabama (EJI)
Equal Justice Initiative of Alabama (EJI) provides legal representation to indigent defendants and prisoners denied fair and just treatment in the legal system. Read the following story to know more about their efforts in releasing innocence from the dead row.
Since 1973, more than 130 people have been released from death row after evidence of their innocence was uncovered. For every 8 people executed in this country, one innocent person has been exonerated.
Seven people have been exonerated in Alabama. Walter McMillian, Randall Padgett, Gary Drinkard, Louis Griffin, Wesley Quick, James Cochran, and Charles Bufford are among those found not guilty of the crimes that originally put them on Alabama’s death row. The astounding error rate in capital punishment is a serious indictment against the death penalty.
Since its inception, EJI has obtained relief for dozens of death row prisoners who were illegally convicted or sentenced to death. EJI represents condemned prisoners on death row, the incarcerated who have been sentenced to excessive and harsh terms of imprisonment, children sentenced to adult prisons, the mentally ill and others who have been unfairly or unreliably convicted. In 2006, EJI won freedom for several people who had been sentenced to life imprisonment with no parole for non-violent drug offenses or other petty crimes. EJI has won relief for a mentally retarded man who was wrongfully sentenced to death and is defending dozens of poor people who have been sentenced to death and denied adequate legal assistance which resulted in wrongful convictions.
(Learn more about them here: http://www.eji.org/eji/deathpenalty/innocence)
The Equal Justice Initiative of Alabama has bettered the lives of individuals entering the Alabama criminal justice system because of the high quality of legal representation that they offer. They have also addressed the root cause of injustices in Alabama through litigation and efforts to reduce the effect of racial discrimination in the state. Read more reviews from experts here to learn more about this organization
The Juvenile Justice Project of Louisiana (JJPL)
The Juvenile Justice Project of Louisiana is aimed to transform the juvenile justice system into one that ensures children are given the greatest opportunities to grow and thrive. Read the following story about how they made a progress in the juvenile justice system of New Orleans.
Treated Like Trash: Before Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans Parish detained 100-200 youth on average daily, most of them waiting to go before a judge for low-level offenses. As Katrina approached in August 2005, authorities at the two local detention centers transported youth to the adult Orleans Parish Prison.
There, youth endured flooding and exposure to toxins in their cells; a harrowing evacuation; and, upon arrival at a local bridge – further deprivation of food, water and medical care, heat exposure, violence and psychological stress. And, despite FEMA declaring the Youth Study Center in New Orleans more than 50 percent uninhabitable, youth were eventually moved back into the detention facility.
Our member groups Juvenile Justice Project of Louisiana (JJPL), Families and Friends of Louisiana’s Incarcerated Youth (FFLIC) and others joined to push against the system, while also participating in reform tables with system stakeholders led by the Annie E. Casey Foundation and the W. Haywood Burns Institute (BI). In 2008, JJPL filed a class action lawsuit against New Orleans and the school board.
Triumph: New Orleans now boasts the only stand-alone and nonprofit juvenile public defender’s office in the country, Juvenile Regional Services, which was established out of the work of attorneys during the aftermath of Katrina. Young detainees the the Youth Study Center are provided day and night schooling, and the population of detained youth that has dropped to around 25.
But such progress may be at risk with the building of a new facility. FEMA is limited by statute to only replace facilities. In the case of the Youth Study Center, that means an 82-bed facility. Director Hong said he has proposed a “work-around” plan, meaning only 40 secure beds — with the remaining 42 reserved for runaways, transitional housing and mental health beds.
Concern remains regarding a new 82-bed facility that would also house youth who should not be in custody of the juvenile justice system (runaways, mental health, homeless). Groups are also fighting against youth being sent to adult prisons; the criminalization of marginalized populations, namely Black youths (99 percent of those detained) and LGBTQ youth; and punitive school disciplinary policies.
These issues are echoed in juvenile justice systems nationwide.
(Learn more about them here: http://jjpl.org/new/?cat=6)
The reform efforts pursued by the Juvenile Justice Project of Louisiana have helped to decrease the number of violent juvenile facilities and have increased the quality of life for incarcerated juveniles. Read more reviews from experts here to learn more about the great work The Juvenile Justice Project of Louisiana is doing.