Changing outcomes & transforming communities
Participatory Defense is a grassroots movement of people coming together to fight against harsh sentences and wrongful convictions in the criminal legal system, as well as school discipline procedures that feed the school to prison pipeline. They do this by participating in the HUB – a virtual meeting space for each Case Team (the person facing charges, their family and their community members) to come together with other Case Teams for support and to develop strategy for all of the cases in the HUB.
The HUB is a working space. This means the work is done by the members of each Case Team.
Note: The Emergent Justice team are not attorneys, nor do they work for anyone in the HUB in a legal capacity or otherwise. We are an organization which uses a community driven pre-trial justice approach to help people better navigate the criminal justice system.
Knowledge is Power
Most people enter the criminal justice system with limited knowledge about how it operates. Neither they, their families nor their community know they can play a critical role in influencing the outcome of the judiciary process by taking constructive action at specific points along the way. Participatory Defense empowers participants through these primary program components:
Regular HUB Meetings: meetings are held to help individuals and families learn to become agents of change and understand how they can be part of and expand the defense team. Together they look at documents, share their knowledge and experience, and brainstorm next steps. Currently, meetings are held virtually on the 2nd and 4th Wednesday of the month. If your case is accepted into the HUB, you or your representative commit to attending all meetings.
Social Biography Packets/Videos: The HUB staff work with the families to collect information which would provide a complete picture of the character of and assistance for a person facing charges in the court. They are used to show community support, encourage alternatives to incarceration, and help the court better understand the actions the defendants will take to be successful.
Court Monitoring & Support: HUB team members will also be present in court, providing moral support for the defendant, helping the family understand the process, holding the representatives of the court accountable and identifying systemic changes in policies and procedures which need to be addressed.
We are not attorneys and we do not give legal advice. The Participatory Defense model is designed to complement and support the work of defense attorneys, not undermine it. Working with local public defender’s offices is a meaningful part participatory defense; a mutually beneficial relationship in which we can learn from them, and they from us.
Our HUB includes both people recently arrested or charged and those who are incarcerated but fighting a wrongful conviction or excessive sentencing.
SUBMIT A CASE TO THE HUB: We are redesigning the HUB to better meet the needs of the community. Therefore, we are not accepting new cases. We will update this section when we begin to accept cases again.