On November 8, 2012, the US Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio reported that charges were filed against Thomas L Newman, the director of the Flats Oxbow Association, for stealing over $580,000.  He is charged with money laundering and “theft and embezzlement in federally funded programs.”

It is believed he used $583,570 of Flats Oxbow Association funds for his own personal use.  

Flats Oxbow Association (FOA) is a non-profit organization that helps businesses and residents in the Flats neighborhood in Cleveland.  The organization received $393,758 from the Department of Housing and Urban Development between 2006 and 2011.  

Around the start of the funding, Newman was appointed as executive director and routinely reported back to the board of trustees for the organization.  He was in charge of soliciting donations, receiving dues from FOA members, and maintaining financial records.

He was paid an annual salary of $50,000 for his job as the executive director.  

Court documents indicate that Newman wrote checks to himself from FOA from 2006 to March 31, 2011.  Furthermore, he used company credit cards to renovate a property on 1250 Riverbed Street that his wife has personal interest in.  

Newman is also charged with trying to hide and disguise the check payments to himself and the credit card charges for the renovated property.  

The U.S. Attorney’s Office has not released any information about Newman’s sentencing or the date he is scheduled to be sentenced.  

The FBI led the investigation, and the case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Vasile C. Katsaros.  

United States Attorney Steven M. Dettelbach declared, “We will continue to root out public corruption and misuse of tax dollars in all its forms.  

Newman is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation

On September 18, 2012, the Federal Bureau of Investigation made a new compilation to the Top Ten Art Crimes list.  The piece of art is an oil painting by the French Impressionist Pierre Auguste Renoir and has an estimated value of $1 million.

According to the FBI report, the painting, called Madeleine Leaning on Her Elbow with Flowers in Her Hair, was stolen in an armed robbery on September 8, 2011.  Since the initial investigation, the FBI has now raised the award to $50,000 for any information that leads to recovery of the painting.

The owner of the painting reported a loud noise downstairs on the night of the robbery, and after she checked on the noise, she was met by a man in a ski mask.  Since the robbery, the FBI has alerted art dealers, gallery owners, and auction houses to look out for the painting.

“If the thief tries to place the painting with a reputable dealer or gallery, or tries to sell it at auction” states Bonnie Magness-Gardiner of the Bureau’s art theft program, “members of the art community here and overseas will see that the artwork has been stolen and will alert the FBI.”

The painting is on a piece of canvas about the size of 50.17 x 41.28 centimeters.  The painting is no longer in its original frame.

The victim reported that the masked robber was about 18 to 26 years old and white.  He was also about 160 pounds and 5’ 10” tall.  The man owns or had possession of a large-caliber handgun.  Contact the FBI if you have any information.  You should contact your FBI office or the U.S. Embassy or Consulate near you.  You can also submit a tip at www.fbi.gov.

Since the Top Ten Art Crimes list was established in 2005, six paintings and one sculpture have been retrieved by the FBI.  

Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation

According to a report released by the FBI on September 7, 2012, new and expectant parents need to be aware of new trends and precautions to protect their infant from abduction.

The FBI reports that while infant abductions are rare compared to other types of crime, they do happen.

For example, a woman 28 years of age was shot and killed in Texas by a 30 year-old-woman who then proceeded to kidnap the infant—only three days old—from the pediatric center.  Fortunately, the child was rescued only six hours later.

Criminals are now creating more elaborate crimes because simply walking out of a hospital with an infant is now difficult.  Most newborns have a security bracelet that will trigger an alarm unless removed.

A recent case in January of 2012 highlights the growing complexity of infant abductions.  According to the FBI, a 32-year-old woman in Florida formed a friendship with a younger mother on a social networking website.  The woman said she too has a newborn and the baby was in the hospital.  The new mother then invited the older woman to her home to spend the night, and while the new mother was in the shower the next morning, the older woman abducted the young infant.

The older woman deleted her profile from the social networking website, but she was still caught and arrested.  The baby was returned to the mother.

The FBI recommends that expectant and new parents take the following precautions to deter child abductors:

1.       New parents should not post colored balloons outside of home that announce a newborn or baby shower.

2.       Parent needs to stay particularly aware in public.  Be suspicious of someone who asks too many questions about your pregnancy and baby.

3.       Adjust your privacy settings for social networking sites so strangers cannot see your personal information.

4.       Report any suspicious behavior immediately.

5.       Women between the ages of 17 and 33 are most likely to abduct a newborn.

Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation

Chatham, NJ—Criminal defense attorney Jack Arseneault knows that when he walks into a courtroom, he's already facing an uphill battle.  “My practice is primarily in white collar criminal defense,” he explained in a recent interview with laws.com.  “I would say there is an overwhelming presumption of guilt.”

For Arseneault, a military veteran who grew up in a low income family, defense came naturally.  “I always felt like the underdog, but this allowed me to gain a fair perspective of life,” he says.  “A passion for the law grew in me when I was exposed to the criminal justice system in the military.”

(More on News at LAWS.com, Contact Alberto for interviews “support@laws.com”)

From the beginning of his career—when out of 8 attorneys assigned to 8 defendants in a federal corruption case, his client was the only one to walk free—Arseneault had a high level of success in defending his clients.

While in his early career, Arseneault defended everyone from teachers to law enforcement officers he believed had been wrongly accused, his cases today tend to involve high-profile white collar crime.  Because of this, he has represented a number of celebrity defendants over the years.

These clients, according to Arseneault, present challenges for attorneys because of their overall priorities.  “I know they are frequently more concerned with public perception than with the defense of charges,” he says.  “The two factors are not conducive together—their overwhelming concern about how the case may affect their public image can sometimes overshadow their level of focus.  This concern may lead to frequent statements, made either by themselves or by their representatives, to change public perception.”

Plea bargains have been increasing in popularity over the last several decades, and Arseneault says that deciding whether or not to go to trial should be weighed carefully.  “If the offer doesn't significantly change the exposure to the client, you ought to defend the case by going to trial.  There are sometimes collateral consequences to the conviction that are so great that the client has little choice but to go to trial—like losing certain licenses and deportation.”

However, in the federal court system, Arseneault says that going to trial can be tough.  “Most of my work is in the federal courts.  Rarely do they indict unless they have what I call a headshot—in other words, if they really have them.  That, coupled with the federal sentencing guidelines, makes the plea bargain more attractive.”

Attorneys looking to practice criminal defense should be careful to avoid some common errors, according to Arseneault.  “Some of the biggest rookie mistakes happen when trial lawyers get too caught up thinking the case is about them, and not the client,” he says.  “New lawyers should also know how to talk to a jury, as opposed to talking at a jury.  Lastly, new lawyers often underestimate how high a level of preparedness is required to work on cases.”

Today, Arseneault can pick and choose his cases carefully.  “Having been in practice for many years, I allow myself to try cases I feel extremely passionate about.  I turn down clients that I know I can't zealously represent because of the nature of the allegations.  What I do offer my clients is passion and commitment.”

To learn more about this New York Criminal Defense attorney visit https://www.awffa.com.

Dallas, TX—To new attorneys thinking of becoming criminal defense lawyers, John Teakell says it's best to start on the other side.  “From my perspective, it would be beneficial to be a prosecutor for at least a short period of time, to get a sense of how prosecution works and what a prosecutor's thought process is,” he told laws.com  in a recent interview.

Teakell knows what he's talking about.  After having a successful entry into the world of criminal law in the state prosecutor's office, he moved on to even greater success by spending over 12 years as a federal prosecutor.  By the time he had spent a large part of his legal career putting people behind bars, he says that he began to consider what his next move should be.

“I enjoyed my time as a prosecutor, but I felt it was time for me to move on,” he explains.  “I got to a certain age, where if I didn't do it, then I worried that I might regret it later on in life.”

(More on News at LAWS.com, Contact Alberto for interviews “support@laws.com”)

Teakell's experience prosecuting drug trafficking cases came in handy when it came time to defend people accused of similar crimes—people who sometimes had no idea that they had been used to traffic drugs until they were arrested.  “About a decade ago, another attorney and I represented a young woman who unbeknownst to her, a 'friend' was using her and her car to transport a significant amount of illegal drugs.” In this federal court case, he successfully got a not guilty verdict for his client. Although this success was a great achievement in his career he says  “each case is different, I don’t guarantee success with all cases ” 

Defense attorneys face consistent challenges when trying to work for their clients, and Teakell believes that many of those challenges come from the lack of resources that defense attorneys sometimes have at their disposal.  “Coming up with evidence can be a challenge, even if the defendant claims he or she is innocent,” he says.

While many people may think of criminal defense as a legal area that involves a great deal of trial work, Teakell says that trials are few and far between.  “The vast majority of cases at both the state and federal levels are mostly plea agreement cases, and not trial cases,” he says.  “You have to evaluate every case to see if the evidence is there.”
The proposed sentence in the plea agreement can also make a difference, according to Teakall.  Because federal cases are almost always decided in accordance with federal sentencing guidelines, Teakell says that these cases give attorneys an opportunity to evaluate the risks of trial more clearly: “If there isn't much difference between the offer and the sentence, then it may be worth going to trial—if there is a great difference, it may be an agreement case.”

Regardless of what the prosecution will be using as evidence against his clients, Teakell says that it's critical to make sure that every client is presented with their full range of options.  “Regardless of how weak or strong the government's cases are, I always try to explore other alternatives,” Teakell explains.  “It's always up to the client whether they are going to accept a plea agreement or not.”

Today, individuals facing white collar criminal charges in Texas and throughout the United States look to the Law Office of John R. Teakell  to provide a zealous defense. His practice primarily focuses in criminal law and securities background with over 25 years of courtroom experience. He has a thorough knowledge of both federal and state crimes and both federal and state court systems. To learn more about his practice visit, www.teakelllaw.com and www.txfederalcriminaldefense.com

New York, NY—As one of the best defense attorneys in New York City, Glenn A. Garber doesn't just take cases that will win him accolades.  Instead, he often finds himself representing people accused of high-profile, shocking crimes.

“In the early 90s, I represented a Japanese national named Yu Kikamura who was convicted of attempting one of the first terrorist acts on American soil,” Garber told laws.com in a recent interview.  “My work focused on a post-conviction attack, which included a claim supported by a Department of Justice study that the FBI had fabricated evidence against my client.”

(More on News at LAWS.com, Contact Alberto for interviews “support@laws.com”)

The case, he says, taught him an important lesson.  “I learned that the criminal justice system has a high tolerance for government misconduct when the criminal defendant is unpopular or accused of a heinous crime.”  Garber also represented Mahmoud Abouhalima, the man convicted of the first World Trade Center attack in 1993.

Garber got his start working for the Legal Aid Society after law school graduation.  “I took great pride in helping indigent criminal defendants seek justice in a hostile environment that only pays lip service to the constitutional rights of the accused,” he says.  “I never looked back.  Whether my clients are indigent or not, I believe there is no greater calling than championing the rights of the accused.”

Today, to continue his work with indigent defendants, Garber runs a not for profit organization called the Exoneration Initiative.  The Exoneration Initiative has been responsible for freeing innocent people from prison who had been accused of crimes like murder and rape.

While DNA evidence is often used to exonerate prisoners, Garber believes that many more innocent people are behind bars who have no such evidence to rely on.  “Even though DNA exists in less than 10 percent of criminal cases,” he says, “it is difficult for courts to accept non-DNA claims of innocence, especially in the post-conviction setting.”

What courts should do, according to Garber, is “apply the lessons from the DNA exonerations to the non-DNA cases.  This starts with a cultural change—a willingness to take a second look at cases on the merits, instead of summarily casting them aside on procedural grounds.”  This is critical to people convicted of offenses, who generally can only appeal their convictions if there was a procedural error at trial, rather than when new exculpatory evidence comes to light.

The Exoneration Initiative has taken on major government players when trying to exonerate wrongly convicted people, including the NYPD.  “We recently won an Article 78 proceeding against the police department in a complex FOIL litigation,” Garber says.  “The case involves suppressed exculpatory evidence that can free a man who has been incarcerated for 18 years for a murder we believe he did not commit.  NYPD is appealing, and we are still fighting for release of the evidence.”

Garber currently divides his time between his private practice and the pro bono work of the Exoneration Initiative.  While defending some of society's least-loved people can be a difficult and demanding job, Garber says there's nothing he'd rather do.  “Justice is the exception, not the rule—and it is only achieved if you fight for it.” To learn more about Glenn Garber and his practice please visit: https://www.glenngarber.com/

New York, NY—Saul Bienenfeld says that in today's criminal justice system, the public’s  perception of defense attorneys is all wrong.

“One of the biggest challenges criminal defense attorneys face is the perception of people who question the reasoning behind defending people charged with a crime,” he told laws.com in a recent interview.  “Many of my clients are innocent, and even if my client is guilty, they are still entitled to the best defense they could possibly get.  People don't understand that, and it is often looked upon as if I am doing a disservice to the community by defending them.”

(More on News at LAWS.com, Contact Alberto for interviews “support@laws.com”)

This, he says, leaves the public believing that defense attorneys are barely a step above criminals, themselves—a situation that isn't the same in other countries using a similar legal system.  “In this country, we have a negative perception of criminal defense attorneys, whereas in England, you could be both the prosecutor and a criminal defense attorney at the same time,” explains Bienenfeld.  “I'm not saying they have a better system, but they don't perceive criminal defense attorneys the same as they do in this country.”

For defendants, one of the biggest choices can be whether to go to trial.  In a legal environment where only about 5 percent of total criminal cases ever go to trial, Bienenfeld says that he is “not afraid to take a case to trial when my clients insist on it.  I also believe it's a good idea to take a case to trial if I know I can win the cases.  As long as I have the client's consent, I am not opposed to it.”

New attorneys who are interested in the life of criminal defense lawyers don't need to go any further than their local courthouse, according to Bienenfeld.  “Go to as many trials as you can,” he advises.  “Some of the top litigators are trying cases in federal court.  It's also a good idea to visit state courts and watch trials. When my parents were dating my dad would take my mom to night court to watch what goes on.  It was an exciting night out that cost nothing.  As trial attorneys we have an obligation to continually learn new trial techniques what better way is there then to watch them first hand."

Good interpersonal skills will also help, he says.  “Don't be afraid to go up to the attorney and ask them case specific questions.  When I first started, the best advice I got was: 'Go to the courthouses and invite other attorneys to lunch.'  You will get known and you will gain great experience.”

While some attorneys might consider an innocent client easier to defend, Bienenfeld says that cases involving the wrongfully accused can actually be the most stressful.  “I feel very passionate about proving my client's innocence, to such a degree that I lose sleep thinking about my client,” he says.  “There is always a slight possibility that an innocent person is charged with a crime they did not commit, and then it becomes my fault if they are found guilty.”

One of the biggest surprises for Bienenfeld has been the way that media reacts when a high profile client is in trouble.  “The press sometimes finds out information about a defendant or a case that even I can't find—I am astonished at how they are able to get certain information.”

As a former Assistant District Attorney for The Special Narcotics Bureau, with over 20 years experience as a successful criminal defense attorney he fully understands both sides of the field. The Law Offices of Saul Bienenfeld P.C. is always ready to help out his fellow New Yorkers. To learn more about his practice please visit www.sbienenfeld.com. 

Orlando, FL—As a Florida criminal defense attorney and civil litigator, as well as being a CNN and local news Legal Analyst whose cases have included representing Tiger Woods, Texas Equusearch in the Casey Anthony case , Lou Pearlman and a host of prominent people, politicians and celebrities, Mark NeJame is one of the best.  Nicknamed “The Fixer,” NeJame knows his way around high profile cases.

“Those lawyers who say 'I am never going to speak to the press' aren't necessarily doing their clients a service, because there will be times you need to communicate with the press,” NeJame told laws.com in a recent interview.  He added, “But there are other times though that the press should be entirely avoided. You have to understand the way the press works today versus the way it used to work yesterday and you have to use that knowledge towards your client’s best interest.”

(More on News at LAWS.com, Contact Alberto for interviews “support@laws.com”)

For attorneys today, NeJame says that means learning about new technologies, including blogs and social media.  “There are some cases that you want to run up the flagpole,” he explains, noting that it's possible to increase the attention a case receives from the public by effectively using these channels. His believes that his firm has been very successful with many settlements and pleas because of concerns from the opposing side regarding issues of publicity.

Not many people can speak as well on camera as Mark NeJame.  While he has earned accolades for his role as a legal analyst in the Casey Anthony trial and has been showered with various awards, he says that his favorite role is still one that he fills outside the courtroom.  “The biggest recognition I've ever gotten is when my little girls call me 'Papa,'” he says.  “I have been very fortunate and blessed in my career, but nothing compares to my role of being the best father I can possibly be.”

Those little girls, NeJame explains, are being raised with a sense of civic responsibility at home.  “Since our children were born, I've whispered into their ears, 'to those whom much is given, much is expected.'  With 30 years of hard work, my wife and I have found ourselves in a wonderful position in life—and felt it was time to start a charity that benefitted other children.”  The NeJame’s charitable foundation, Runway to Hope, which works to help children with cancer, has been repeatedly voted Best Charity in Central Florida.  Runway to Hope has made three separate one million dollar pledges to the three children’s hospitals in Central Florida and expects 1,700 to attend this year’s May gala. This year’s event includes celebrities like Olympic gold medalist Gabby Douglas and actress Ashley Greene from the Twilight sagas. Many celebrities as diversified as Shaquille O’Neal, Larry King, Dan Rather, The Jonas Brothers, Katie Couric, Akon and Piers Morgan have also done promotional videos for their event.

In spite of the good fortune he has had, NeJame says that he faces many of the same challenges as any other criminal defense attorney.  “We seem to have a crime du jour,” he explains.  “One moment, it's crack cocaine, the next year, its domestic violence.  The challenges start when you think a case will be handled a certain way, but when it becomes the political genre of the year, then those arrested suffer the political consequences.” 

As he has gained prominence, NeJame says that he's been able to be more selective about his clients.  For him, that has meant being able to leave cases alone if they seem like they'll make his life worse.  “We recently turned down an offer to represent [George] Zimmerman,” he says, mentioning the man accused of killing teenager Trayvon Martin.  “As a matter of fact, we turned it down twice.”

Why ignore a case with such major media exposure?  Because for NeJame, some cases just aren't worth it, no matter how much publicity they might bring.  “I had just finished three major cases back to back, and taking a case like Zimmermancan suck the lifeblood from you—as a father and husband, I just chose not sacrifice my family.  I fall asleep at one or two o' clock most nights in front of the computer, doing work.  What we do is extremely demanding and stressful. The best interest of a client should always be paramount and not my pockets or the media exposure I may receive.  There will always other clients, cases and causes that will be in need of my help.”

To learn more about his practice, click here. 

The Violence Against Women Act was passed by both chambers of Congress, and its reauthorization was signed into law by President Obama earlier this month. This marks a milestone for the women’s rights movements and for victims of sexual and domestic violence all across the country. Since 1994, VAWA has changed the way our societydeal with domestic violence by changing the way the federal government responds, providing funding to essential programs and now, under the new version, provides new provisions for members of the LGBT community and Native American women.

(More on  News at LAWS.com, contact Adam for interviews “adama@laws.com”)

Domestic violence is prevalent in every state. In Massachusetts, for example, more than 33,000 women and children received help from a community based domestic violence program in 2005. In 2006, 28 were killed in domestic violence related incidents. Domestic Violence shelters in Massachusetts have been filled to capacity, and thousands who had sought refuge in one of the state shelters were turned away because of a lack of space.

Healing Abuse Working for Change (HAWC) has been providing free services to victims of domestic violence since 1978. HAWC provides its services to victims of domestic violence residing in 23 cities and towns across Massachusetts’ North Shore. HAWC provides several services and they include: individual advocacy, a 24-hour hotline, legal advocacy, an attorney program, community education, a shelter program, children’s services and hospital advocacy.

The following is an interview with Paula Gomez Stordy of HAWC on her opinion about the recent reauthorization of VAWA, and the work of HAWC in the fight against domestic violence.

In your opinion, what does the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) signify for the civil rights movement of women?

The reauthorization of VAWA was a victory.  It continues to advocate for the civil rights of women, Native American women and it expands protections to gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking.  However, it was frightening to think that these protections that were put in place  in 1994, could have been decreased.  Countless, advocates and survivors across the country exercised their right and worked diligently for the reauthorization of VAWA.  We are grateful that both chambers of congress understood the impact of violence and passed the reauthorization.  In this day in age protections for the human rights of women should not be  at stake.

Do you think the new version of VAWA does enough to protect women against domestic violence?

Whenever, a law is passed it is necessary for the law to be implemented in all levels of government and society- federal, state, local.  Sexual assault and domestic violence programs across the country continue to be underfunded.  There is a great need of services.  Daily, we have to turn people away from our shelter because it is at capacity.  Education and prevention programs are essential for the safety of our community and sometimes programs have to decrease outreach and education when the direct service need is so urgent.

The new VAWA has historic provisions for Native Americans and members of the LGBT community. Do you think the law as passed represents a step in the right direction for both groups?

Absolutely.  The law was incomplete.  Victims of domestic violence, stalking, and sexual assault include LGBT people and Native American women. Sexual assault and domestic violence programs also must be inclusive to all victims of sexual and domestic violence.  For various reasons, it is difficult for survivors to reach out for help.  Therefore, when that happens every survivor should feel they are supported regardless of their gender, gender expression, or sexual orientation. .Everyone deserves a life free of violence.  

What has HAWC been able to achieve in terms of advancing the cause of domestic violence victims in the state of Massachusetts?

Founded in 1978, this year HAWC celebrates 35 years of providing free and confidential domestic violence services to residents of 23 cities and towns in the North Shore. HAWC has offices in Lynn, Salem, and Gloucester as well as advocates in the Beverly Police Department and North Shore Medical Center.

Its mission is to create social change by taking action against personal and societal patterns of violence and oppression. With an annual budget of 1.7 million, HAWC services include:

24 hour hotline 1 800 547-1649

Individual advocacy

Support groups

Legal Advocacy

On call Hospital and Police Response

Shelter

Parent/Child Trauma Recovery Services

Homicide Prevention Teams

Youth Violence Prevention Education

Community Education

This past fiscal year 2012 HAWC served over 3,000 adults and children experiencing abuse.

Do you believe Massachusetts has come far since the initial passage of VAWA in 1994?

I do.  I began working in the field of domestic violence in 1994 and since then we have been more inclusive about how we identify victims and survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking.  We have more research about the lethality of abuse and impact of trauma.  We are more aware of cultural diversity.  One type of solution does not help all equally.  Survivors of abuse are diverse.  Therefore, responses and services should represent that diversity.

Our community as a whole is more educated about sexual and domestic violence and that’s exactly what needs to happen in order to decrease violence in our community. It’s everyone’s issue. This topic was once taboo.  I am grateful for the strength of survivors who had the courage to talk about their experiences.  Their experiences and the experiences of victims who lost their lives at the hands of a perpetrator have changed laws and society as a whole.   

If you are a victim of domestic violence in the state of Massachusetts, please contact HAWC for help. To learn more about domestic violence, please visit the Domestic Violence Page. 

Interviewed with Paula Stordy of Healing Abuse Working for Change (HAWC), Salem, Massachusetts

Montgomery, AL—Shortly after moving to Montgomery in the 1980s to work for the then-new Equal Justice Initiative, defense attorney BryanStevenson got to meet one of the biggest icons of the civil rights movement: Rosa Parks, the black activist who most famously was arrested for her protest of an unconstitutional Alabama law requiring black riders to sit in the back of buses when whites wanted a front seat.

“There were actually three amazing people there who were involved in the Montgomery bus boycott,” Stevenson recalled of the meeting in a recent interview with laws.com.  “One was Rosa Parks.  The other two, you may not know: Ms. Johnny Carr, who organized the Montgomery bus boycott, and Virginia Derr.  They invited me over to their house and they were all on the steps talking for about two hours, and finally, after a couple of hours, Ms. Parks turned to me and she said: 'Now, tell me, Bryan, what are you doing here in Alabama?”

(More on News at LAWS.com, Contact Alberto for interviews “support@laws.com”)

Stevenson told her about his plans for the Equal Justice Initiative—how he wanted an organization that could work to get innocent people off death row, end mass incarceration, and stop racial bias in the criminal justice system.  When he was done, he says, “Ms. Parks looked at me and shook her head, and said, 'mmmh, mmmh, mmmh, mmmh,' she said, 'That's going to make you tired, tired, tired.'  And Ms. Carr leaned forward, and she put her finger in my face, and she said, 'That's why you've got to be brave, brave, brave.”

“Brave, brave, brave” is exactly what Stevenson has been.  His remarkable life has taken him on a path from the “colored” elementary school in his rural Delaware town to Harvard Law School, to working in the Deep South to get innocent people off death row.  Today, he is known as one of the most dedicated and talented attorneys and legal scholars working on the issue of injustice and bias in the criminal justice system.

In this kind of highly politically charged work, Stevenson says emotions are an asset, not a liability.  “My emotions are a part of when I manage these cases,” he told laws.com.  “It's quite emotional for me, but what keeps me strong is knowing that they need me to be a strong advocate.  I have been successful in my career, and this is what has energized me and kept me motivated to continue.  EJI holds its offices in a historical space, with all the souls around it to remind me to keep an eye on the prize.  It keeps me honest.”

The historical space Stevenson refers to is a former whites-only school on Montgomery's Commerce Street, which was an infamous slave trading space before the Civil War.  Slave auctions were held not far from where Stevenson's office chair sits today—and Stevenson's work has drawn important parallels between America's contemporary system of mass incarceration and antebellum slavery.

Children are of special concern to Stevenson, who has rallied against the sentencing of children as adults and has worked to end the school-to-prison pipeline that has been imposed upon many young black men.  Stevenson's work with the EJI was instrumental in leading to the Supreme Court decision ending sentences of life imprisonment without parole for juveniles, which he describes as “an energizing and gratifying experience—there is still a lot of work to be done, but it is encouraging.  We are hopeful that we can continue to make progress.”

Stevenson has freed people from death row and from prison, and he knows his work is far from done, no matter how “tired, tired, tired” he gets.  To would-be attorneys wanting to make a difference, Stevenson gives this crucial piece of advice: “Make sure you can handle being uncomfortable, because you can't create justice without it.”