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Debtors’ Prison Project

  • Children Sue Michigan Sheriffs, Two Biggest Jail Telecom Companies, and Billionaire Detroit Pistons Owner Tom Gores, Asserting Right to Hug Their Jailed Parents

    March 21, 2024 Media Contact Civil Rights Corps | Cheryl Bonacci (818) 339-6928 | cheryl@civilrightscorps.org Public Justice | Steve Ralls (292) 679-0362 | sralls@publicjustice.net Pitt McGehee Palmer Bonanni & Rivers | Robin Wagner (248) 658-0016 | rwagner@pittlawpc.com March 21, 2024 – Children in Flint and Port Huron, Michigan have filed two landmark civil rights lawsuits…

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  • L.A. Takes Step Towards Ending Punishment-for-Poverty Pretrial System

    For Immediate Release: October 2, 2023 Press Contacts: Contact: Lucy Sears (240) 676-4499 | lsears@publicjustice.net Contact: Cheryl Bonacci (818) 339-6928 | cheryl@civilrightscorps.org Los Angeles, CA.  — On Sunday, October 1, the Los Angeles Superior Court (LASC) took an important step towards limiting the criminalization of poverty by implementing the Pre-Arraignment Release Protocol (PARP) in Los…

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  • Los Angeles Superior Court Issues Preliminary Injunction in Money Bail Lawsuit

    For Immediate Release: May 16, 2023  Press Contacts: Cheryl Bonnachi, Civil Rights Corps | 818-339-6928 | cheryl@civilrightscorps.org Sara Rosenblit, Munger, Tolles and Olson, LLP | press@mto.com Lucy Sears, Public Justice | (240) 676-4499 | lsears@publicjustice.net Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Lawrence Riff grants motion for preliminary injunction, halting enforcement of LA County’s cash bail schedule,…

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  • Civil Rights Groups File Lawsuit Challenging Los Angeles County’s Bail Schedule Policy

      For Immediate Release November 14, 2022 Contact: Lucy Sears (240) 676-4499 | lsears@publicjustice.net Contact: Cheryl Bonacci (818) 339-6928 | cheryl@civilrightscorps.org LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – On November 14, 2022, Public Justice’s Debtors’ Prison Project, in partnership with Civil Rights Corps, Hadsell Stormer Renick & Dai LLP, Schonbrun Seplow Harris Hoffman & Zeldes, LLP, and Munger,…

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  • ‘We’re seeking justice for Erie Moore and his family’ – Debtors’ Prison Project Director Leslie Bailey.

      The Public Justice and American Association for Justice Presidents’ Party and Reception on Feb. 14, 2022, at the JW Marriott Desert Springs Resort & Spa in Palm Desert, California offered Public Justice Board members and members of AAJ’s Minority and LGBT Caucuses an opportunity to mingle and network. But with Public Justice Executive Director…

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  • Groups Urge Senate Leadership to End Qualified Immunity

    View PDF May 10, 2021 The Honorable Charles Schumer Majority Leader U.S. Senate Washington, DC 20004 The Honorable Mitch McConnell Minority Leader U.S. Senate Washington, DC 20004 Re: End qualified immunity to ensure meaningful accountability measures in the Senate version of the Justice in Policing Act of 2021. Dear Senate Majority Leader Schumer and Senate…

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  • $500 Fine Imposed on Homeless Man Shows Why We Need the Excessive Fines Clause

    Public Justice urges Washington Supreme Court to strike down unconstitutional fine By John He, Debtors’ Prison Project Skadden Fellow Last week, Public Justice’s Debtors’ Prison Project filed a friend-of-the-court brief in City of Seattle v. Long, an important case pending before the Washington Supreme Court on behalf of a homeless man who was charged over…

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  • Evidence Shows Montgomery Residents Were Illegally Jailed For Inability to Pay Fines

    The court held that the Montgomery Municipal Court “engaged in a systemic practice of jailing traffic offenders for failing to pay fines without inquiring into their ability to pay” and “deprived offenders of their due process and equal protection rights not to be incarcerated for their poverty”—and that there is sufficient evidence to hold both…

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  • End Qualified Immunity

    Public Justice joins a broad coalition of allies in calling on Congress to pass the Ending Qualified Immunity Act and restore accountability for police departments and officers across the country.

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