Social Services | Defender Association of Philadelphia

VIDEO: Blended Practices

COMMUNITY SUPPORTS AT THE FRONT END OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM

Defenders connect clients to community services and supports from the beginning stages of the criminal justice process.

The Defender social service team understands the importance of ensuring that clients are viewed as a complete person rather than a case file.

Defender Social Workers focus on connecting clients with services at the front-end of the criminal justice system by developing individualized, community-based treatment plans to focus on a person’s underlying needs and challenges.

By meeting with clients at the earliest possible point in the case, we support and humanize our clients so that the criminal justice system makes high-stakes decisions about the person rather than the charges.

Advocacy That Humanizes The Person Beyond What's Written On Paper

We provide timely referrals and connections to services, including:

Employment
GED/ Education
Health care
Counseling
Mental Health
Substance Abuse
Homelessness
Domestic Abuse
Disability
Reintegration / Re-Entry
Parenting
Recovery Housing

For More Information, Contact

Victoria Sanita, Director of Interdisciplinary Social Services

Erica Berson, Adult Social Service Coordinator

Helen Levin, Mitigation Specialist & Sentencing Advocacy

Acting Director, Adult Social Services

Defender Association of Philadelphia

15 hours ago

U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-N.J.), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee and Chair of the Subcommittee on Criminal Justice and Counterterrorism, and Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, introduced a package of bills geared towards improving the U.S. criminal justice system: the Providing a Quality Defense Act and the Sentencing Commission Improvements Act. ... See MoreSee Less

Booker, Durbin Introduce Bills to Improve Access to Counsel Guaranteed by Constitution and Increase Representation of Public Defenders in U.S. Criminal Justice System - Gideon's Promise

www.gideonspromise.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 16, 2023 CONTACT: Maya_Krishna-Rogers@booker.senate.gov Booker, Durbin Introduce Bills to Improve…

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4 days ago

Happy #gideonday! Today marks the 60th Anniversary of Gideon v. Wainwright, the Supreme Court decision that constitutionally guarantees EVERYONE the right to an attorney, regardless of their ability to pay.

As #publicdefenders, our mission is to provide the best possible legal defense and support to marginalized people who need the most help. #Phillydefenders Chief Defender @khudson_phillydefender reflects on the mission, the clients and the colleagues who inspire and motivate her and other public defenders to do this vital work.

@bpda_justice @the_napd #publicdefense ... See MoreSee Less

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Happy #gideonday! Today marks the 60th Anniversary of Gideon v. Wainwright, the Supreme Court decision that constitutionally guarantees EVERYONE the right to an attorney, regardless of their ability to pay.

As #publicdefenders, our mission is to provide the best possible legal defense and support to marginalized people who need the most help. #Phillydefenders Chief Defender Keisha Hudson reflects on the mission, the clients and colleagues who inspire and motivate her and other public defenders to do this vital work.

Black Public Defender Association National Association for Public Defense #publicdefense ... See MoreSee Less

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The study, from John Jay College’s Data Collaborative for Justice, showed that the 2020 bail reform laws eliminating judges’ ability to impose bail for low-level crimes actually reduced the likelihood that someone would get arrested again.

The one exception was for bail-eligible people who were released following recent violent felony arrests. The rate of rearrests for that cohort of offenders increased slightly. ... See MoreSee Less

Study shows those released under NY's bail reform laws are less likely to get rearrested

gothamist.com

The two-year rearrest rate for people released due to bail reform was 44%, compared to 50% before the reform.

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5 days ago

ACLU of Pennsylvania lays out stop and frisk history in lead-up to mayoral election ... See MoreSee Less

ACLU of Pennsylvania lays out stop and frisk history in lead-up to mayoral election

whyy.org

Philadelphia’s mayoral candidates are already debating public safety strategies, including stop and frisk. The ACLU of Pennsylvania has a new policy paper about the history of the practice.

CALLING ALL #HBCU students with a passion for #criminaljusticereform!

#Philydefenders & Black Public Defender Association are partnering to sponsor an HBCU Summer Fellowship #thissummer. The Fellowship is a FULLY PAID, FULL-TIME summer position that will work closely with our Program Coordinator on our Junior Defenders program.

Junior Defenders is a community education program for middle and high school students in neighborhoods disproportionately impacted by the criminal legal system. The purpose of the Junior Defenders is to educate youth about the courts, engage young people to become leaders in their schools and community and engage in prosocial behavior leading to safer and healthier communities. More info: www.phillydefenders.org/juniordefender

THE APPLICATION DEADLINE IS MARCH 31! We invite all Interested and qualified applicants to apply: www.surveymonkey.com/r/5S6BRNC ... See MoreSee Less

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COMMUNITY SUPPORTS AT THE FRONT END OF THE JUSTICE SYSTEM

Advocacy That Humanizes The Person Beyond What's Written On Paper

We provide timely referrals and connections to services, including:

For More Information, Contact

Defender Association of Philadelphia

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