Category: Criminal Justice Reform

Chief Defender on Shooting of Eddie Irizarry

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PHILADELPHIA–“It’s a very sad fact that Eddie Irizarry should be alive today. It’s also true that we, as a city must come together to honestly and forcefully address the issue of shifting police narratives.

“This is an issue we, as public defenders deal with too often in the courtroom. When police officers give misleading accounts of their own actions, it not only undermines the integrity of our justice system, but also creates irrevocable harm to people on trial. If we want to have a serious conversation about public safety, then we need every stakeholder to honestly and transparently perform their duties.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with Eddie Irizarry’s family and loved ones, and we join them in calling for answers and accountability from our justice system for this tragedy.”

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In Memory of YASP Co-Founder Josh Glenn

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The Defender Association of Philadelphia joins the thousands of our city’s young people, activists and community members in mourning the sudden passing of YASP co-founder Josh Glenn. Josh was an incredible leader and advocate. Among his many achievements was the establishment of the nation’s first Youth Participatory Defense Hub, right here in Philadelphia. Any progress we’ve made toward reforming our juvenile justice system would not be possible without his efforts and leadership.

There are few individuals—or organizations, for that matter—who have positively impacted as many young lives as Josh Glenn. Though our thoughts and our hearts are with his family at this time, this is a loss for the entire city of Philadelphia.

Memorial Services will be held on Thursday, August 24, at Monumental Baptist Church (4948 Locust St). The viewing will be at 9AM, with the service to begin at 10AM. The service will also be live-streamed on Monumental Baptist Church’s Facebook page.

Josh Glenn Memorial Fund Info

 

Press Release: Defender, Partners for Justice Collaboration

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PHILADELPHIA–The Defender Association of Philadelphia is partnering with national nonprofit Partners for Justice (PFJ) to further expand its practice and take on more extensive wrap-around service capacity in the community. The partnership, which officially began on July 17, will enable the Defender to bring on a team of non-attorney advocates who will help clients navigate and mitigate the damage caused by the criminal legal system, ensuring more people are able to move forward from a criminal case with their futures intact. 

The collaboration between the two organizations began this month when three PFJ client advocates began two-year stints with the Defender Association. The advocates, working within the Defender Association’s juvenile and adult divisions, will assist attorneys with mitigation and aid clients with ancillary matters, from youth mentoring and assistance with school evictions to re-entry work and parole planning. 

“Our partnership with PFJ is critical to our mission to provide client-centered advocacy that not only includes providing legal services, but connecting clients to supportive services and creating pathways to social and economic stability,” said Chief Defender Keisha Hudson.

Partners for Justice was founded in 2018 with a mission to transform public defense and has since expanded to 24 locations across the nation. Philadelphia is PFJ’s second location in the commonwealth, following a 2022 partnership with the Delaware County Public Defender’s Office, and third location regionally with a site in Delaware. Since PFJ was founded, client advocates have connected thousands of clients annually with supportive services and reduced jail time by finding appropriate and effective non-carceral alternatives.

“We’re incredibly excited to collaborate and help the Defender Association level up their already amazing services, said Emily Galvin-Almanza, PFJ’s Founder and co-Executive Director, “Public defenders are most visible as essential front-line workers in our legal system, but looking at the work they actually do—helping folks with housing, employment, substance use and mental health treatment, benefits access—it becomes clear that they’re actually integral to our public safety, public health, and economic infrastructure as well.”

Hudson said Collaborating with PFJ will help the Defender Association achieve its goal of expanding services provided to its child and youth clients. “We were very specific about centering our young clients in our budget request to the City of Philadelphia. Bringing in PFJ Advocates is one of the ways we’re investing the additional resources we received this year from City Council.”

Galvin-Almanza: “When public defenders partner with our Advocates, clients have the resources and tools to break the cycle of poverty, criminalization, and incarceration Investing in public defenders is investing in the safety of our communities and investing in individual prosperity.”

For information about this partnership, read BillyPenn’s coverage here.

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Defender Statement on JJSC Ruling from Commonwealth Court

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PHILADELPHIA–“The Defender Association of Philadelphia applauds the Commonwealth Court ruling ordering the state to intervene to ease the overcrowding and mitigate the unhealthy and dangerous conditions at Philly’s Juvenile Justice Services Center (JJSC).

“For months, Defender’s leadership team and attorneys have been advocating—publicly, privately and every day in court—for a range of solutions that would address the overcrowding at the JJSC and ensure that these children received the care and supportive services they need. Although we’re waiting for the City and the Courts to reconvene our weekly meetings on JJSC, the Commonwealth’s suggestion that we haven’t been engaged in this conversation is factually inaccurate and insulting.

“To be sure, there are approaches we should be implementing to address the problem. Reexamining who should be detained; better use of existing technology (e.g. GPS monitors) and reporting centers; and working with local organizations to expand our pipeline of supportive services for children are all ideas we should explore on the local level. But this crisis also requires some intervention and a greater sense of collaboration from the Commonwealth. For example, just a slight, temporary adjustment to their staffing ratios (say, from 1:4 to 1:5) could go a long way to easing overcrowding at the JJSC.

“The JJSC is just the latest example of why simply warehousing young people is not an effective public safety tactic. In the short term, we’re straining city resources and putting children and staff at risk. In the long term, the family separation and life-threatening conditions of confinement are exposing our children to trauma that can last for a lifetime.”

Keisha Hudson on FY 2024 Budget

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The Defender’s budget increase shows our City leaders understand the value of a well-funded public defenders office.

PHILADELPHIA–“On behalf of the staff and Board of Directors of the Defender Association of Philadelphia, I’d like to thank the Kenney Administration and City Council for proposing and passing a budget that includes a significant funding increase for our office.

“While our primary role is providing free legal counsel for those accused of crimes, we believe that connecting our clients to supportive services is the key to keeping them out of prison and on the path to brighter futures. To that end, the Defender Association will be putting the additional funds to good use. Most notably, we’ll be adding more social workers and attorneys to support our children and youth clients. The increase will also allow us to collaborate with Partners for Justice, whose advocates will work alongside our attorneys, connecting clients to healthcare, employment, housing and other needs.

“We appreciate the City of Philadelphia for recognizing that, when it comes to creating healthier, safer communities, a well-funded public defender is every bit as important as the investments we make in law enforcement and other areas of the justice system.”

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Talking Community Outreach with Guy Lang

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[vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1682706311203{padding-top: 20px !important;padding-bottom: 20px !important;background-color: #263797 !important;}”][vc_column][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1682706531697{padding-top: 20px !important;padding-right: 20px !important;padding-bottom: 20px !important;padding-left: 20px !important;background-color: #ffffff !important;}”]Guy Lang, the Defender’s Director of Youth Programs and Community Outreach, stopped by the Germantown Info Hub podcast to talk about his grassroots approach to working with community members, and share information on the Jr. Defender and other Defender Association outreach programs. Listen to the episode below.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1682706500919{padding-top: 20px !important;padding-bottom: 20px !important;background-color: #263797 !important;}”][vc_column][vc_raw_html]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[/vc_raw_html][/vc_column][/vc_row]

Talking Public Defense Funding on “Philly Speaks”

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[vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1682016102458{background-color: #c0eefd !important;}”][vc_column][vc_column_text]On April 16, Keisha Hudson joined Senator Vincent Hughes and Rep. Napoleon Nelson on Hughes’s “Philly Speaks” radio  program (WRNB) to discuss public defense funding in PA. Listen to the full discussion.[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space][vc_video link=”https://vimeo.com/phillydefenders/wrnbapril16″ align=”center”][/vc_column][/vc_row]

Testimony: Committee on Gun Violence Prevention

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[vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1681765453980{background-color: #ffffff !important;}”][vc_column][vc_column_text]On April 17, Chief Defender Keisha Hudson presented testimony before City Council’s Committee on Gun Violence Prevention. The Defender’s testimony offered data and proposed solutions on ways to address the conditions that push too many of Philadelphia’s young people toward gun possession.

Watch Keisha’s testimony below, and click here to read the full written testimony submitted to City Council. submitted by the Defender.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1681765467994{background-color: #ffffff !important;}”][vc_column][vc_video link=”https://vimeo.com/818504697″][/vc_column][/vc_row]

Keisha Hudson on “New Thinking” Podcast

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Listen to a snippet from Keisha Hudson here

[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/2″][vc_column_text]Chief Defender Keisha Hudson joins Michigan Law’s Eve Primus, and Brooklyn Law Center’s Alexis Hoag-Fordjour to discuss the groundbreaking yet unfulfilled legacy of Gideon v. Wainwright. 

Listen to the full podcast below:[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”20″][vc_raw_html]JTNDaWZyYW1lJTIwc3R5bGUlM0QlMjJib3JkZXItcmFkaXVzJTNBMTJweCUyMiUyMHNyYyUzRCUyMmh0dHBzJTNBJTJGJTJGb3Blbi5zcG90aWZ5LmNvbSUyRmVtYmVkJTJGc2hvdyUyRjZEZkpJd3NueGxnRjF2OHZrRHdvcGolM0Z1dG1fc291cmNlJTNEZ2VuZXJhdG9yJTIyJTIwd2lkdGglM0QlMjIxMDAlMjUlMjIlMjBoZWlnaHQlM0QlMjIxNTIlMjIlMjBmcmFtZUJvcmRlciUzRCUyMjAlMjIlMjBhbGxvd2Z1bGxzY3JlZW4lM0QlMjIlMjIlMjBhbGxvdyUzRCUyMmF1dG9wbGF5JTNCJTIwY2xpcGJvYXJkLXdyaXRlJTNCJTIwZW5jcnlwdGVkLW1lZGlhJTNCJTIwZnVsbHNjcmVlbiUzQiUyMHBpY3R1cmUtaW4tcGljdHVyZSUyMiUyMGxvYWRpbmclM0QlMjJsYXp5JTIyJTNFJTNDJTJGaWZyYW1lJTNF[/vc_raw_html][/vc_column][/vc_row]

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