sex registries Registries increase homelessness and joblessness and don’t increase safety. 4 Minute Read https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5POMr7q7P0g Registration and notification laws for people convicted of sex offenses cause significant harm without providing any real public safety benefits. The scientific consensus that has emerged over the past quarter century shows that...
Case screening Pre-charge case screening by prosecutors can avoid the negative consequences of an arrest. 6 Minute Read Some people arrested by police in DC are not charged with a crime, but that person can still be each person is nevertheless handcuffed, booked, detained overnight, transported to...
mandatory minimums Mandatory minimums are extreme sentences that DC residents and victims want eliminated. 4 Minute Read https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n0GOwTEBHSYBy imposing mandatory minimum sentences, courts lose the ability to customize sentences based on individual circumstances and victims’ stated goals and preferences. Mandatory minimum laws do not deter crime but...
All articles Policing Mandatory Arrests Qualified Immunity Repeat Arrests Special and campus police Car Chases Consent Searches Jump-Outs Citation in lieu of arrest Body Searches ...
body searches Invasive body searches strip people of their dignity, privacy, and cause trauma. 3 Minute Read While Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) policy limits invasive searches, lawsuits have shown that some officers violate these policies. These painful and humiliating invasive searches cause unnecessary harm, can cause long-lasting...
repeat arrests Reducing repeat arrests by expanding treatment would increase safety and reduce harm. 5 Minute Read There are a small number of individuals who are frequently re-arrested and jailed, sometimes from the same locations. They end up going through the criminal legal system over and over without...
Criminal record discrimination People with criminal records lack core protections from the systemic discrimination they face. 3 Minute Read Individuals with prior criminal records often encounter discrimination in areas like employment, education, and housing. In DC, this discrimination disproportionately affects Black individuals, with 96 percent of those...
criminal record sealing and expungement Arrest and conviction records are lifetime barriers to employment and housing. 3 Minute Read One in seven DC residents have criminal records, and they face hundreds of laws, policies and practices that can prevent them from getting a job, finding housing, pursuing...
Jury Selection Jury service is a key civic duty – peremptory challenges prevent Black people from serving. 4 Minute Read Either the prosecutor or the defense can reject a potential juror without giving a reason; these are called “peremptory challenges.” In DC criminal trials, each side is allowed...
Charging children as adults A judge, not a prosecutor, should decide whether a child should be charged as an adult. 4 Minute Read DC is one of only 14 jurisdictions in the country where a prosecutor can directly charge a child as an adult without a court...