Debevoise & Plimpton LLP Partner and former federal judge John Gleeson will discuss the First Step Act and the work of federal defenders and pro bono programs to address racial inequity through “second look” sentencing
In 2020, Governor Newsom signed Senate Bill 823, which mandated that California's youth state prisons be closed by June 2023, and shifted the responsibility to counties of housing and treating youth who would have otherwise been sent to state institutions.
Since then, counties have been tasked with creating facilities that are supposed to provide evidence-based, therapeutic environments and alternatives to incarceration, with the goal to minimize the population of incarcerated youth. In many counties, including Los Angeles, this transition has only exacerbated decades of substandard, inhumane, and dangerous conditions for youth residing in these facilities.
Join us on Wednesday, February 7 from 12:15-1:30 PM for a panel discussion about the work local and statewide advocates are doing to realize a vision of community-based, trauma-informed alternatives to incarceration, as well as challenges they are facing in the fight to end youth incarceration. Our panel features:
- Ka'lee Matthews, Youth Advocate, Arts for Healing and Justice Network
- Grecia Reséndez, Policy Analyst, Center on Juvenile and Criminal Justice
- Aditi Sherikar, Senior Policy Associate, Children's Defense Fund California
The panel will be moderated by Leah Zeidler-Ordaz, Youth Justice Policy Lead, UCLA Law's Criminal Justice Program. Lunch will be provided.
Join public defenders from across the state to develop defense skills of client interviewing and preparing opening statements. All law students who participate will receive individualized feedback in a small group setting from skilled public defenders.