Uplifting the Directly Impacted in our Democracy - October State Updates

October 28, 2023

October was a big month for the Justice team at Dream.Org. After a year-long process, five finalists competed for their share of our $1 million Justice Innovation Prize during a pitch competition at the SOCAP Conference. Three winners, FreeCap Financial, JusticeText, and Unlocked Labs, were chosen by an esteemed panel of judges to receive $250,000 to help scale their innovative ideas and disrupt the prison industry.

Janos Marton, Chief Advocacy Officer at Dream.Org (left) and Nisha Anand, CEO of Dream.Org (right) with the three winners of the 2023 Justice Innovation Prize.

On October 29, twenty-five leaders from across the United States graduated from our 2023 Dream Justice training and became our 2023 Dream Justice Cohort. These leaders will go on to spearhead campaigns in their communities that will change the criminal justice system. We are looking forward to working with each leader to further efforts in their states in the years to come.

The 2023 Dream Justice and Dream.Org staff at graduation in St. Louis.

Here’s a summary of our state activities:

Arizona:

The Arizona team continues to engage stakeholders to prepare for the 2024 legislative session which will focus on two bills, Home Arrest will bring people home from incarceration up to 18 months early on a Home Arrest with Electronic Monitoring program and an Independent Prison Oversight bill. So far, the team has secured common ground support for the bills from both left- and right-leaning organizations.

Arkansas:

In October, our team continued to monitor the rollout of the policy passed in 2023 to suspend payment of Fines and Fees for 120 days after release from incarceration. The team is busy preparing for the 2024 Day of Empathy and our Empathy Leader Gem Jones’ campaign for the 2025 season, which will focus on Adult Parole.

Kentucky:

Our current focus in Kentucky is preparing a rapid response to the Safer Kentucky Act alongside our Kentucky Empathy Leader. This new omnibus is a list of 18 regressive policies, including new "Three Strikes" laws and drug-induced homicide laws for fentanyl. We fear that without action it will pass, even over a hypothetical Gov. Beshear veto, and lead to a large increase in Kentucky's already overcrowded prison system. The Kentucky team also continues to build momentum for Clean Slate in Kentucky and prepping strategies following the Kentucky gubernatorial election.

Mississippi:

In Mississippi, we are developing a strategy to tackle the issue of expungement in the next legislative session. Our Mississippi Empathy Leader Cynetra Freeman, our lobbyist LaDarrion Ammons, and Mississippi state Senator Brice Wiggens were all participants in our Dream Justice Cohort Graduation ceremony. In October, Dream.Org’s Director of Advocacy, Sean Wilson, was a speaker alongside Cynetra at the Rethinking Reentry Conference in Mississippi.

Mississippi Empathy Leader, Cynetra Freeman, and Dream.Org Advocacy Director, Sean Wilson, speaking at the Reentry Conference in October.

Missouri:

In Missouri, our Empathy Leader ML Smith is hard at work preparing for the 2024 legislative session and is currently planning a series of organizing events that will help propel momentum into the 2024 legislative session. In 2024, the Missouri team will be working on Confidential Informant reform. Our recently concluded Dream Justice cohort graduation was held in St. Louis.

Pennsylvania:

Our team in Pennsylvania continues to advocate for HB 900, the Pennsylvania Dignity Bill. In the spring of 2023, the Dignity Bill moved to the Senate Judiciary and is currently in the Senate Judiciary committee. There are a number of criminal justice bills currently being moved through the Pennsylvania legislature and being negotiated, and we are making sure Dignity makes it across the finish line.

Washington:

Our Empathy Leader Eugene Youngblood continues to focus on retroactivity for the 2023 Juvenile Points legislation that we passed last year, as well as gaining parole review for those given long sentences as Emerging Adults (18-25 years old).

Wisconsin:

In addition to working on expungement and supervision issues in the current legislative session, our team in Wisconsin will be a concerted organizing campaign in harm reduction space, taking the lessons of our “Public Health is Public Safety” campaign in Kentucky.

The Dream.Org Justice team and our incredible Empathy Leaders continue to fight to positively transform the criminal justice system in our country. None of this work would be possible without your partnership. I look forward to sharing additional updates with you in December.