February 2016 Highlights

Rethinking Rikers: Last week, New York City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito announced the launch of a blue-ribbon commission, to be chaired by former New York State Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman and charged with reducing pre-trial detention, "utilizing more community courts," and getting the population of Rikers Island "to be so small that the dream of shutting it down becomes a reality." We will play a supporting role, offering research and strategic advice to the commission.

Community Justice in Brownsville: We continue to offer alternatives to incarceration and positive leadership opportunities to young people in Brownsville, Brooklyn. The New York Times has written about our work several times in the past few weeks, including a piece entitled "Brownsville’s Broken Windows."

Fighting for Tenants: Launched with the help of the Robin Hood Foundation and the New York City Human Resources Administration, Poverty Justice Solutions puts 20 newly-minted lawyers to work representing low-income New Yorkers in Housing Court. Recent press coverage can be found here and here.

Bail Reform: The City of New York has made a commitment to reforming the bail process by expanding the availability of supervised release programming. We will assist with this effort in the Bronx, Staten Island, and Brooklyn, where our Brooklyn Justice Initiatives has been documented to reduce pre-trial detention and incarceration.

Alfred Siegel Scholarship: We are proud to announce that the winner of the 2nd annual Siegel Scholarship is Anthony Reindhardt, a junior at John Jay College. A political asylee from Trinidad and Tobago, Anthony plans to become an attorney to advocate on behalf of the LGBTQA community. We created the Siegel Scholarship to honor the life and legacy of Alfred Siegel, our deputy director who passed away in 2014.