Bronx Defenders statement on NYC Council passing of the Fair Chance Act
The Bronx Defenders applauds the New York City Council for passing the Fair Chance Act, a bill that will give New Yorkers with criminal records a fair chance to compete for jobs. The Fair Chance Act will prohibit all public and private employers in New York City from asking about an applicant’s criminal history until…
Bronx Defenders advocates present at NASW Addictions Institute conference
Yesterday, June 3, 2015, four Bronx Defenders advocates presented at the National Association of Social Workers, New York City Chapter (NASW-NYC) 47th Annual Addictions Institute conference, “Marijuana and Emerging Drugs: Evolving Perceptions in Addictions.” Bronx Defenders Parent Advocate Dinah Ortiz and Social Worker Sarah Cremer presented on the presumptions and prejudice surrounding drug use by pregnant…
The Bronx Defenders wraps up its 2015 Defenders’ Academy Spring Training Program!
The Bronx Defenders wrapped up another session of our nationally renowned Defenders’ Academy Spring Training yesterday. Over six days, 74 participants from over a dozen different organizations – ranging from public defender offices to private firms to the U.S. military – came together at The Bronx Defenders Justice Campus to partake in an intensive trial skills program…
Mohamed Sheriff to receive a 2015 New York City Bar Association Legal Services Award
The Bronx Defenders is proud to congratulate Mohamed Sheriff, our Senior Legal Advocate, who will receive a 2015 New York City Bar Association Legal Services Award! Sheriff is one of five honorees who will receive the Legal Services Award for his outstanding work and dedication in providing free civil legal assistance to indigent New Yorkers. The…
Justine Olderman testifies before City Council on the stigma of mental illness
Managing Director of the Criminal Defense Practice Justine Olderman presented oral testimony before the New York City Council Committee on Courts and Legal Services earlier this month, on May 12. While commending the efforts that the Mayor and City Council have made thus far to address the over-incarceration of the mentally ill, Justine’s testimony called attention…
The Bronx Freedom Fund receives NCJA Outstanding Criminal Justice Program Award!
The Bronx Freedom Fund has been selected as the recipient of the 2015 National Criminal Justice Association Outstanding Criminal Justice Program Award for the Northeast Region. Each year, NCJA honors five outstanding criminal justice programs at the National Forum on Criminal Justice. Award winners are selected by a panel of criminal justice experts to recognize innovative…
The Bronx Defenders to be honored by Child Welfare Organizing Project
Next Wednesday, May 13, Bronx Defenders Executive Director Robin Steinberg, on behalf of The Bronx Defenders, will accept the honor of “Courageous Social Activist” from the Child Welfare Organizing Project (CWOP). As CWOP celebrates 20 Years of Activism next week, they will be honoring Dr. Terry Mizrahi, professor at Hunter School of Social Work and…
Emily Galvin to present at Bennington College’s Incarceration in America conference
Bronx Defenders Criminal Defense Attorney Emily Galvin will be presenting at Bennington College’s second conference in its Incarceration in America series: Effecting Change, on May 15–16, 2015. The conference is part of Bennington’s growing Incarceration in America initiative, which includes curriculum, visiting speakers, theatrical events, think tanks, and retreats to develop public policy and political action in…
The Bronx Defenders receives Community Organization Award from Brooklyn Law School
Earlier this week, Bronx Defenders Trial Chief Karen Smolar accepted the “Community Organization Award” on behalf of The Bronx Defenders from the Brooklyn Law School National Lawyer’s Guild Chapter and the Brooklyn Law School Public Service Office. The Community Organization Award is given to an institution or group which is dedicated to social justice and has…
Pro Bono props from The Bronx Defenders!
The Bronx Defenders works with a number of pro bono law firms on a range of matters, from isolated client case issues to ongoing projects. This support plays a crucial role in advancing our mission to combat the systemic challenges driving indigent people into the justice system, and to redefine public defense. To highlight just…
Kate Rubin testified before City Council in support of proposed Office of Civil Justice
The Bronx Defenders Managing Director of the Civil Action Practice Kate Rubin presented written and oral testimony to the New York City Council Committee on Courts and Legal Services yesterday, April 15, in support of Intro 736, a local law to establish the Office of Civil Justice. The Bronx Defenders supports Intro 736 because an…
St. Louis Post-Dispatch: ArchCity Defenders saw problems with municipal courts before Ferguson turmoil
Two years before Ferguson attracted national attention for racial tension and questionable court practices, a group of volunteer lawyers calling itself the ArchCity Defenders was already concluding that something was off about the city. Today the group is at the forefront of a legal movement to overhaul municipal courts regionally — one that has already…
Bronx Defenders advocates present at National Association of Social Workers conference
Three Bronx Defenders advocates — Social Worker Sarah Knight, Parent Advocate Keston Jones, and Civil Legal Advocate Maria Monica Andia — will be presenting at the National Association of Social Workers (NASW), New York City Chapter conference “Social Work in the City: Dreams and Realities of Life in New York” on April 8, 2015. The conference aims…
Kate Rubin and Scott Levy testified before City Council on community policing
Bronx Defenders Managing Director of the Civil Action Practice Kate Rubin, together with Fundamental Fairness Project Director Scott Levy, submitted written comments on behalf of The Bronx Defenders to New York City Council’s Committee on Public Safety on March 3, 2015, discussing key issues to consider in community policing. The testimony describes two critical lenses through which…
Kate Rubin to speak at Jon Jay panel on community consequences of incarceration
On Thursday, March 5, 2015, John Jay College of Criminal Justice will be hosting the fifth installment of the 2014-15 PRI Occasional Series on Reentry Research, highlighting issues raised by the National Academy of Sciences’ groundbreaking report, “The Growth of Incarceration in the United States: Causes and Consequences.” Bronx Defenders Managing Director of the Civil…
Runa Rajagopal to present at ABA National Summit on Collateral Consequences
Bronx Defenders Civil Action Supervising Attorney and Team Leader Runa Rajagopal will be leading a panel on Friday, February 27th at the First National Summit on Collateral Consequences in Washington, DC, presented by the ABA Criminal Justice Section in collaboration with the National Institute of Justice. Runa’s panel, entitled “Real Life Collateral Consequence: Stories from the Field,” will…
Justine Olderman Presented Testimony to City Council on Evaluating the Effectiveness of Indigent Defense
But in truth, traditional metrics fail to adequately measure effective representation…We cannot talk about caseloads, qualifications, training, or supervision without taking into account the radical change in our responsibility to our clients. We must first recognize that no matter how well organized, staffed, trained, supervised, and evaluated we are, we are not meeting minimum standards…
Keston Jones to speak on “The State of the Black Family” panel at Penn State Law
Bronx Defenders Parent Advocate and Focus on Fathers Project Coordinator Keston Jones will be joining a panel discussion at Penn State Law, organized by the Black Law Students Association, on Tuesday, February 3, 2015. Penn State Law is hosting this program as part of Black History Month to address how Black families are treated throughout the…
New York Law Journal: City Broadens Its Evaluation of Indigent Criminal Defense
New York City officials are testing a number of methods to assess the quality of indigent criminal defense, which, they say, is part of a broader attempt to make for a fairer criminal justice system. Though the city now tracks conviction rates, incarceration rates, case duration, charge reduction and disposition at arraignments, officials in Mayor…
Keeping families together: Spotlight on BxD’s “Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies” project
Recognizing the pain and trauma of family separation, The Bronx Defenders advocates tirelessly in Bronx Family Court to ensure that our clients are given fair access to justice and that their children are not removed merely because their families are over-policed and prosecuted for being poor. Responding to this reality, we launched our Healthy Mothers,…
WBAI’s On the Count: Immigration and Detention Post-Obama Executive Order
The Bronx Defenders Immigration Attorney Conor Gleason joined Abraham Paolos of Families for Freedom to discuss the New York Immigrant Family Unity Project (NYIFUP) and the impact on families of deportations post-Executive Action Orders on WBAI’s “On the Count” with guest host Khalil Cumberbatch last Saturday, January 10, 2015. Listen to the segment here:
Thank you to everyone who supported The Bronx Defenders’ holiday gift drive
We would like to express our sincere gratitude to all of our supporters, friends, and partners who contributed to The Bronx Defenders Annual Holiday Gift Drive, which allows our clients to give holiday gifts to their families when they otherwise would not be able to afford them. Thanks to the many contributions to our Amazon Wish List,…
Support BxD’s Annual Coat Drive!
As the winter gears up and temperatures drop, many of our clients lack sufficient winter coats to stay warm. In response, The Bronx Defenders carries out a coat drive each winter to make sure that clients or their family members have access to warm winter coats for free. Please consider donating a coat today! For…
Vice: Special Prostitution Courts and the Myth of ‘Rescuing’ Sex Workers
“Once they get you, they are always going to get you,” Love* told me this November at a greasy spoon in the Bronx. “The sad thing is that nobody ever stands up there and fights them.” Love is a 48-year-old black woman. She has high cheekbones, and her full lips smirk easily, especially when she…
The Bronx Defenders releases its report “The Hidden Tax: Economic Costs of Marijuana Enforcement in the Bronx and New York City”
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE December 17, 2014 Contact: Scott Levy, The Bronx Defenders, 718-838-7833, ScottL@bronxdefenders.org The Hidden Tax: Economic Costs of Marijuana Enforcement in the Bronx and New York City New York – The Bronx Defenders released The Hidden Tax: Economic Costs of Marijuana Enforcement in New York, a report by The Bronx Defenders Fundamental Fairness…