EQUAL JUSTICE NOW
A not for profit social welfare organization that advocates against false arrest, unreasonable detention, wrongful conviction and incarceration of our citizens. Our mission is to preserve their constitutional right to defend themselves on the local, state and federal levels.
“First they came for the socialist, and I did not speak out because I was not a socialist. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out because I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me, and there was no one left to speak for me.”
– Martin Niemoller
1st Annual Benjamin Crump Equal Justice Now Awards
Recent Articles
Equal Justice Now Featured in The Scoop LA
Houston First Responder Muster & Walk Like MADD 5k
Pamela Turner Press Conference
How America Became Over-Policed
12 Reasons To Worry About Our System
Wrongfully Convicted And Jailed 38 Years, Fred Clay Gets $1 Million Payout
THE PROBLEM
Risk Assessments are Ineffective
Risk assessments are steadily being proven to be junk science. Scholars and social justice advocates agree that these risk assessment algorithms promote racial injustice and are highly ineffective at accurately predicting the flight risk of a defendant.
After implementation of the proposed risk assessment app in Harris County, supposed low-risk criminals released on unsecured bonds failed to appear in court 50% of the time.
Additionally, risk assessment tools do not satisfy the requirements of recent decisions from the 5th Circuit or the 11th Circuit regarding bail reform.
The current tool proposed by the Office of Court Administration is not automated and it is not a program that accesses criminal history databases. The app simply calculates a score based upon information entered into the app, provided by the defendant, and the information entered is not disclosed to the court.
TAKE ACTION
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