Category: Press Release
Keir Bradford-Grey on Firing of MontCo Defenders
PHILADELPHIA–“The sudden termination of Montgomery County’s top defenders, Dean Beer (chief) and Keisha Hudson (deputy) chief is a stunning move that will have a negative, chilling effect on public defenders who want to provide the best possible representation for indigent clients.
“Beer and Hudson were doing the critical work of not just representing their clients in court, but advocating for the communities who are most impacted by the justice system. There have been several reports that these defenders were fired for their filing of an amicus brief that criticized MontCo’s bail hearing practices. If that’s true, then the county has taken a major step backward at a time when the rest of the nation is making meaningful justice system reforms.
“It’s a stark contrast from Philadelphia, where we’re fortunate to be represented in Philadelphia by elected leaders like Council President Darrell Clarke and Councilmember Curtis Jones, who made it a point to give the Defender a leadership position on their Criminal Justice Reform Committee.
“Today’s news should alarm every public defender in the nation. We have fought too hard for positive changes in our justice system to sit quietly while defenders are bullied into complying with ‘business as usual’ by those who wish to turn back the clock on the progress we have made.”
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Keir Bradford-Grey on Selection of New Police Chief
Nation’s first youth participatory defense hub opens this week in Philadelphia
For further information, contact:
Josh Glenn, YASP – 267-407-8135
Mandy Nace, Defender Association – 267-765-6319
PHILADELPHIA (April 1, 2019) The Youth Art & Self-empowerment Project (YASP), an advocacy group that supports children charged as adults in the city’s criminal justice system, today announced the launch of the nation’s first participatory defense hub specifically for children and youth entangled in the criminal justice system with support from the Defender Association of Philadelphia and other organizations committed to youth justice.
Participatory defense hubs help individuals and families navigate the criminal justice system with community support. Community organizers working with Silicon Valley De-Bug created the participatory defense model in San Jose, California and have worked to open hubs in cities and towns across the country. The Youth Participatory Defense Hub is Philadelphia’s fourth active community hub – but will be the first in the city and in the nation dedicated to children and youth navigating the juvenile delinquency system and children charged as adults.
“When I was younger, I had to navigate the court system and deal with lawyers and judges largely on my own. It would have been really helpful to have a space like this that I could go to for support,” reflected YASP Co-Director Josh Glenn. “We hope this hub can help young people feel more empowered as their cases move through the system, and lead to more young people remaining at home with their families and able to access the support and guidance they need in our communities.”
The Youth Participatory Defense Hub will meet every Tuesday from 4:30 – 6:30 p.m. at the Institute for Community Justice at 1207 Chestnut Street, Second floor. Hub facilitators and volunteers will support youth and families through the justice process, providing support on court dates, and helping them create social biographies to present themselves as more than a case file. Participatory defense hubs do not offer legal advice pertaining to the facts of a case but will share general information to help prepare for meetings with their attorney.
The Defender Association of Philadelphia provides “Know Your Systems” training and guidance to Philadelphia’s participatory defense hubs and supports the expansion of the program to more neighborhoods throughout the city.
“Participatory defense is transforming the landscape of power in the criminal justice system by engaging our communities,” said Chief Defender Keir Bradford-Grey. “The need for this type of support for children and youth is so critical. Children caught up in the juvenile system and their parents who go to the Youth Participatory Defense Hub will get information and support to help them make better decisions and get better outcomes. Meaningful criminal justice reform starts in our communities, and the Defender Association is proud to support organizations like YASP to support children and youth through the justice process through this new hub.”
Raj Jayadev, an organizer for SV De-Bug and the National Participatory Defense Networks, applauded the effort. “The launch of YASP’s youth centered participatory defense hub really is an inspiration for communities across the country who are looking for ways to flex community power and knowledge to protect our young people in the most proximate and tangible ways.”
The Institute for Community Justice (ICJ), a Program of Philadelphia FIGHT, will host the new hub in its Center City Offices at 1207 Chestnut Street, Second Floor.
“I’m thrilled that the idea of a participatory defense hub to support our children is becoming reality,” added Leola Hardy, Chief of the Defender Association’s Children and Youth Justice Unit. “Time after time we see our clients and their families struggling to navigate the system. Our team of attorneys, social workers, and administrative professionals work hard to support them through the system but this new hub will bring community into the process and support better outcomes for our kids. I’m so proud of all the work YASP has done to open this new hub.”
The Youth Art & Self-empowerment Project (YASP) is building a youth-led movement to end the practice of trying and incarcerating young people as adults. Through its work in the Philadelphia jails, YASP provides space for incarcerated young people to express themselves creatively and to develop as leaders both within and beyond the prison walls. Young people who have been through the adult court system are at the forefront of YASP, leading the movement to keep young people out of adult prisons and to create new possibilities for youth around the city.
The Defender Association is an independent, nonprofit organization that provides high-quality, client-centered legal representation, connection to social services, and re-entry support to adults and juveniles in Philadelphia. Our organization represents nearly 70 percent of adults and juveniles arrested in the City of Philadelphia. Learn more about our work at phillydefenders.org, or on social media @PhillyDefenders.
Press Release: Hearing on Participatory Defense
[vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″][dt_fancy_image image_id=”15404″ width=”200″][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”3/4″][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/6″][vc_column_text]FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/6″ offset=”vc_col-lg-1 vc_col-md-1″][/vc_column][vc_column width=”5/6″][vc_column_text]For further information, contact:
Mandy Nace, 267-765-6319/215-806-0775
Special Committee on Criminal Justice Reform Highlights the Importance of Participatory Defense
PHILADELPHIA (Dec. 10, 2018) Philadelphia’s Special Committee for Criminal Justice Reform co-chair Keir Bradford-Grey, along with fellow co-chairs Councilman Curtis Jones and retired Philadelphia Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel, convened a hearing on participatory defense, a community-driven approach to criminal justice reform that brings families and communities together to create better outcomes and sustainable solutions.
“Participatory defense is transforming the landscape of power in the criminal justice system,” said Chief Defender Keir Bradford-Grey. “As we work with dynamic community organizers to establish participatory defense hubs across our city, we humanize the justice process and reduce our over-reliance on incarceration by helping individuals and their families at the pre-entry stage, or before trial. Right now, people are leaving our jails more desperate, having lost their housing, their benefits, and other supports. Community involvement through participatory defense can change that.
“I’m pleased that our city’s Special Committee on Criminal Justice Reform could provide an opportunity for the people who have made participatory defense a success here in our city to share their experiences. Today is just the start of a longer conversation about how we can expand participatory defense and change the way we approach criminal justice reform.”
Facilitators from Philadelphia’s first three community hubs testified about their work to support individuals, their families, and the larger community through participatory defense. Hub facilitators Steve Austin and Valerie Todd, along with volunteer Pastor Harrod Clay, represented the Mothers in Charge Best Outcomes Hub, which meets every Tuesday evening in center city. Bethany Stewart and Kris Eden discussed their work to establish the South Philadelphia Hub which meets every Monday evening at Circle of Hope Church. Akeem Sims and Nupur Shridhar shared stories about their work at the Kingsessing Hub, which meets every Thursday at the Kingsessing Recreation Center.
The transformative power of participatory defense was amplified by former hub client Nicole Dorrell and Zakiyyah Salahuddin, a South Philly mother who became an active supporter for participatory defense after the hubs supported her son through a difficult case that ended with the dismissal of all charges.
“I can’t begin to explain how much this support means to me,” said Salahuddin. “At every step of the way, our lawyers and community supporters were right there with us. It’s hard to put into words how much that has helped us.”
Assistant Defender Isis Misdary described the power of participatory defense to influence the justice process. “As an attorney who referred several of my own cases to the participatory defense hubs, I can tell you that communities want a say in how their communities can be safer. The system dismantles and disrupts not only families, but also the communities in which individuals and their families live. By removing the person from her family, her community, we remove an opportunity for the community to intervene with a member of their own to heal and move forward.
“Participatory Defense unites communities and stakeholders in a collaborative pursuit of justice. We are changing how communities and stakeholders work together, and we’re transforming not only individual cases, but also, through individual cases, transforming the system itself and by extension, our communities.”
The Defender Association is an independent, nonprofit organization that provides high-quality, client-centered legal representation, connection to social services, and re-entry support to adults and juveniles in Philadelphia. Our organization represents more than 60 percent of adults and juveniles arrested in the City of Philadelphia. [/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/6″ offset=”vc_col-lg-1 vc_col-md-1″][/vc_column][/vc_row]
Press Release: Risk Assessment
[vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″][dt_fancy_image image_id=”15404″ width=”200″][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”3/4″][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/6″][vc_column_text]FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/6″ offset=”vc_col-lg-1 vc_col-md-1″][/vc_column][vc_column width=”5/6″][vc_column_text]For further information, contact:
Mandy Nace, 267-765-6319/215-806-0775
Sentencing Commission’s Proposed Risk Assessment Algorithm Will Increase Mass Incarceration
HARRISBURG (Dec. 6, 2018) The Pennsylvania Sentencing Commission’s risk assessment tool will put more Pennsylvanians behind bars by relying on racially-biased data and punishing people based on what they might do rather than what they have done. Defender Association Policy Director Mark Houldin shared these and other concerns with the commission in a public hearing today about the proposed assessment tool.
“The current risk assessment algorithm would exacerbate mass incarceration and further crowd our prisons – increasing costs to taxpayers and destroying lives and families in the process,” said Houldin. “One reason for this is the disastrously low accuracy rate. When the tool says someone is “risky” it’s correct only 52 percent of the time. That’s barely more accurate than a coin flip.”
Compounding the inaccuracy of the proposed risk assessment tool, Houldin believes that the results would perpetuate existing racial bias and stereotypes that plague our criminal justice system.
“The Defender Association has been leading the fight against these computer-based predictions for years because they destroy a client’s right to be seen as an individual at sentencing. Creating another one-size-fits-all approach will threaten years of progress to reduce the number of Pennsylvanians behind bars.
“As Defender Association attorneys, we know the people we represent. Our clients have unique stories and circumstances, and we work to make sure decisions that affect them are individualized and fair. The Sentencing Commission’s proposed risk assessment tool would drag the justice system into past practices that the public overwhelmingly rejects.”
Defender Association Bail Navigator LaTonya Myers also testified at the hearing, sharing her personal experience in the criminal justice system to emphasize the ways that the proposed risk assessment tool will overlook individual circumstances and experiences, and preclude the possibility for personal growth and rehabilitation.
The Sentencing Commission’s hearing in Harrisburg was the first of six public meetings across Pennsylvania to hear public input about the proposed risk assessment tool. The Defender Association also plans to participate in the public hearing on Dec. 12 in Philadelphia.
Mark Houldin is the Policy Director of the Defender Association of Philadelphia. The Defender Association is an independent, nonprofit organization that provides high-quality, client-centered legal representation, connection to social services, and re-entry support to adults and juveniles in Philadelphia. Our organization represents more than 60 percent of adults and juveniles arrested in the City of Philadelphia. [/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/6″ offset=”vc_col-lg-1 vc_col-md-1″][/vc_column][/vc_row]