Legislators Demand End to Transfer of Women and Transgender People Held on Rikers Pre-trial to Prison
Contact: Sam McCann, Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem ([email protected]) (NEW YORK, NY) – 17 legislators issued an open letter to Governor Hochul and Mayor de Blasio today demanding an [...]
More than 70 Incarcerated Women and Transgender New Yorkers at Rikers Island Release Petition Protesting Transfers to Upstate Prisons
Contact: Redmond Haskins, The Legal Aid Society ([email protected]) Sam McCann, Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem ([email protected]) Sarah Duggan, Brooklyn Defender Services ([email protected]) Emily Whitfield, The Bronx Defenders ([email protected]) Lupe [...]
NDS’ Danielle Jackson Testifies Before NY State Senate on Predatory Court Fees
NDS’ Danielle Jackson testified before the New York State Senate on the End Predatory Court Fees Act. She said that court surcahrges are “a regressive tax that plunders money [...]
Legislators and Impacted People Demand That District Attorneys End Cash Bail Practices to Curb Rikers Crisis
Contact: Sam McCann, Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem ([email protected]) ***FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE*** (NEW YORK, NY) – Legislators, public defenders, and impacted New Yorkers gathered outside the office of Manhattan [...]
NYC Defenders’ Statement on Yet Another Death in DOC Custody
September 20, 2021 Contact: Sam McCann, Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem ([email protected]) Sarah Duggan, Brooklyn Defender Services ([email protected]) Emily Whitfield, The Bronx Defenders ([email protected] ) ***FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE** (NEW [...]
NYC Defenders Demand Courthouse Safety as the Delta Variant of COVID-19 Surges in New York City
August 16, 2021 Contact: Sam McCann, Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem ([email protected]) Press Office, The Legal Aid Society ([email protected]) Sarah Duggan, Brooklyn Defender Services ([email protected]) Emily Whitfield, The Bronx [...]
NYC Defenders’ Statement on Death of Brandon Rodriguez in DOC Custody
August 13, 2021 Contact: Sam McCann, Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem ([email protected]) Sarah Duggan, Brooklyn Defender Services ([email protected]) Emily Whitfield, The Bronx Defenders ([email protected] ) Press Office, The Legal [...]
NDS’ William Botchway Testifies Before New York State Assembly on Emergency Rental Assistance Program
The program, designed to support tenants hurt by the pandemic, faces myriad problems: a confusing application process, unnecessary means testing, bureaucratic delays and more.
To Mark Juneteenth, Neighborhood Defender Service of Detroit Announces Creation of Eviction Defense Practice
The practice will focus on representing people negatively impacted by the economic fallout from the pandemic who are in danger of losing their home, and will play a pivotal role keeping Detroiters housed.
NDS Mourns Death of Former Vera Institute President Michael E. Smith
Michael was a giant in the fight for justice in the criminal legal system and an early supporter of NDS and the practice of holistic public defense.
Joint Statement in Response to Reports that NYC Family Court Clerk Used Racial Slurs to Refer to 15-Year-Old
Joint Statement in Response to Reports that NYC Family Court Clerk Used Racial Slurs to Refer to 15-Year-Old (NEW YORK, NY) – The Legal Aid Society’s Juvenile Rights Practice, [...]
NY Supreme Court Rules Incarcerated People Must be Offered COVID Vaccine Immediately
Judge sides with public defenders and advocates in suit, says state’s exclusion of incarcerated people from vaccine eligibility is unconstitutional March 29, 2021 CONTACT Sam McCann, Neighborhood Defender Service [...]
Following Bombshell Report on COVID Deaths on Rikers Island, Officials Must Address the Deadly Conditions That Persist in Jails and Prisons
Today, THE CITY reported on an unreleased Board of Correction (BOC) investigation into three deaths that occurred in Department of Correction (DOC) custody last year. The men died at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in conditions exacerbated by a series of DOC failures, the report shows
NDS: Mayor de Blasio’s Police “Reform” Plan Reinforces Police Impunity and Endangers Black and Brown New Yorkers
Mayor de Blasio’s plan for police reform is an insult to public defenders, to organizations working to confront police misconduct, and to Black and brown New Yorkers who have been subject to constant surveillance and frequent police violence.
Public Defenders, Advocates Ask Court to Force State to Offer Vaccine to Incarcerated People Immediately
If granted, the preliminary injunction would force the state to begin offering vaccinations to incarcerated people immediately, while awaiting a final decision on the petition.
Public Defenders, Advocates Sue New York, Claim Vaccine Denial Violates Constitutional Rights of Incarcerated People
February 4, 2021 CONTACT Sam McCann, Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem ([email protected]) Arianna Fishman, New York Civil Liberties Union ([email protected]) Redmond Haskins, The Legal Aid Society ([email protected]) Ryan Karerat, [...]
NDS’ Amy Kwak Testifies to New York City Council on Expanding Right to Counsel
Evictions are always an act of violence; during a pandemic they can be deadly. Expand the Right to Counsel
NDS Harlem Calls on New York to Vaccinate Incarcerated People Now
As the pandemic’s latest wave rages, with New York City’s COVID positivity rate now at more than 9 percent, the state has two solutions before it, which must be pursued in tandem: vaccinate every incarcerated person and reduce the jail and prison population. The consequences of inaction would be catastrophic.
Public Defenders Nationwide Announce Plan for Immigration Justice; Provide Ten-Point Plan to Biden Administration
The plan urges the Biden administration and new Democratic majority in Congress to act swiftly and decisively for immigration justice to undo the unjust, harmful and destructive tactics of the outgoing administration.
New York Installs Privacy Safeguards for Contact Tracing
Last night, Governor Cuomo signed a bill into law that will protect the confidentiality of contact tracing information and prohibit access by police and immigration enforcement.
NDS’ Ayami Hatanaka Testifies to City Council on Representation at SCR Hearings
NDS Parent Advocate Ayami Hatanaka testified before the Progessive Caucus of City Council last week on the impact of the State Central Registry (SCR) on Harlem Parents. The caucus [...]
“Morality and Legality Do Not Meet at the Courthouse:” Albert Woodfox on Building a Movement Against Mass Incarceration
By Sam McCann For decades, Albert Woodfox has fought relentlessly against solitary confinement, but that work has taken a different shape since February 2016. That’s when Woodfox was released [...]
Unjust, Coercive Police Interviews Are Traumatizing Children of Color
By Amanda Anger, Social Worker, NDS Originally Published by Truthout My client’s 4-year-old son was locked away from her, held in a back room by police officers in the [...]
NDS Detroit Hosts Open House for New Staff as Office Prepares for Launch
Neighborhood Defender Service Detroit hosted an Open House for its new staff, marking one month before the new office takes its first case in Wayne County. The event featured [...]
“The Power of Public Defense:” Neighborhood Defender Service Debuts New Website, Logo
Today, Neighborhood Defender Service (NDS) launched a new website at www.NeighborhoodDefender.org, that will allow it to better serve clients and advocate for justice beyond the courtroom. The site debuts alongside a new logo that emphasizes “the power of public defense” to secure justice for our clients and communities.
Through Groundbreaking Class Action, Hundreds of New Yorkers Have Old Marijuana Convictions Sealed
A Manhattan Supreme Court justice has ordered the sealing of marijuana possession convictions for more than 300 people. Her order was the result of a successful class action petition brought jointly by the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office, the Legal Action Center, Community Service Society, The Legal Aid Society, New York County Defender Services, Neighborhood Defender Service and pro bono counsel Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP. The case asked the court to seal these criminal records under New York Criminal Procedure Law § 160.59.
Just Three Percent of Cases Go to Trial. A New Paper Unpacks How That Hurts Poor People of Color
By Rick Jones and Cornelius Cornelssen Click to read full article. Despite what courtroom dramas on television and celebrity travails might lead you to believe, the number of [...]
Neighborhood Defender Service Finalizes New Public Defender Office in Detroit
June 13, 2019 DETROIT, MICHIGAN – Today, Neighborhood Defender Service (NDS) signed a contract with Wayne County, Michigan to open a new public defender office in Detroit and represent [...]
TLC’s Unjust Confiscation of Cars Merits Scrutiny
Last week The New York Times reported on the taxi industry’s deplorable practice of preying on low-income drivers by charging exorbitant rates for a taxi medallion, enabling a network of [...]
NDS Staff Travels to Albany to Fight for Harlem Families
Last week, NDS traveled to Albany to fight for families alongside fellow defenders, activists and the people of our communities. The message to legislators: pass two critical laws meant to [...]