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Mississippi
Mar 2017
Dockery v. Hall

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Prisoners' Rights

Dockery v. Hall

The ACLU, the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), the Law Offices of Elizabeth Alexander, and the law firm of Covington & Burling LLP, filed a petition for class certification and expert reports for a federal lawsuit on behalf of prisoners at the East Mississippi Correctional Facility (EMCF). The lawsuit, which was filed in May 2013, describes the for-profit prison as hyper-violent, grotesquely filthy and dangerous. EMCF is operated in a perpetual state of crisis where prisoners are at grave risk of death and loss of limbs. The facility, located in Meridian, Mississippi, is supposed to provide intensive treatment to the state's prisoners with serious psychiatric disabilities, many of whom are locked down in long-term solitary confinement.
Dockery V. Hall. Explore Case.

All Cases

190 Smart Justice Cases

Supreme Court building
U.S. Supreme Court
Sep 2018

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Gamble v. United States

Whether the “dual-sovereignty” exception to the Double Jeopardy Clause—whereby a state and the federal government can each prosecute a person for the same crime, even where neither would be able to do so alone—violates the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution.
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Gamble V. United States. Explore Case.
U.S. Supreme Court
Sep 2018
Supreme Court building

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Gamble v. United States

Whether the “dual-sovereignty” exception to the Double Jeopardy Clause—whereby a state and the federal government can each prosecute a person for the same crime, even where neither would be able to do so alone—violates the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution.
Gamble V. United States. Explore Case.
Kansas Crossroads Foundation v. Markle
Kansas
Jun 2018

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Kansas Crossroads Foundation v. Markle

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Kansas Crossroads Foundation V. Markle. Explore Case.
Kansas
Jun 2018
Kansas Crossroads Foundation v. Markle

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Kansas Crossroads Foundation v. Markle

Kansas Crossroads Foundation V. Markle. Explore Case.
Hester v. Gentry
U.S. Supreme Court
Apr 2018

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Criminal Law Reform

Hester v. Gentry

In Alabama’s criminal justice system, wealth can be synonymous with freedom, and lack of wealth can mean incarceration. That’s wealth-based justice, and it’s unconstitutional. Hundreds of defendants, including Bradley Hester, Ray Charles Schultz, and Randall Parris, are routinely jailed pretrial due to their inability to afford a predetermined bail bond required for release. This system disregards the ramifications of unconstitutional pretrial detention for individuals and families, which include presumption of innocence, economic and emotional hardship, and potential loss of one’s job. We along with partners intervened in a federal class action lawsuit which seeks to end this unlawful detention scheme, and calls on Cullman County to instead implement fair, efficient, alternative conditions of release that are not based on how much money someone has.
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Hester V. Gentry. Explore Case.
U.S. Supreme Court
Apr 2018
Hester v. Gentry

Smart Justice

Criminal Law Reform

Hester v. Gentry

In Alabama’s criminal justice system, wealth can be synonymous with freedom, and lack of wealth can mean incarceration. That’s wealth-based justice, and it’s unconstitutional. Hundreds of defendants, including Bradley Hester, Ray Charles Schultz, and Randall Parris, are routinely jailed pretrial due to their inability to afford a predetermined bail bond required for release. This system disregards the ramifications of unconstitutional pretrial detention for individuals and families, which include presumption of innocence, economic and emotional hardship, and potential loss of one’s job. We along with partners intervened in a federal class action lawsuit which seeks to end this unlawful detention scheme, and calls on Cullman County to instead implement fair, efficient, alternative conditions of release that are not based on how much money someone has.
Hester V. Gentry. Explore Case.
Bobby Bostic v. Rhoda Pash
U.S. Supreme Court
Jan 2018

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Bobby Bostic v. Rhoda Pash

Does sentencing a juvenile offender who did not commit homicide to a term-of-years sentence under which he will not be eligible for parole until he is 112 years old violate the Eighth Amendment?
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Bobby Bostic V. Rhoda Pash. Explore Case.
U.S. Supreme Court
Jan 2018
Bobby Bostic v. Rhoda Pash

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Bobby Bostic v. Rhoda Pash

Does sentencing a juvenile offender who did not commit homicide to a term-of-years sentence under which he will not be eligible for parole until he is 112 years old violate the Eighth Amendment?
Bobby Bostic V. Rhoda Pash. Explore Case.
Youth LWOP
Michigan
Sep 2017

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Hill v. Snyder

VICTORY: Federal Judge strikes down Michigan parole statute condemning youthful offenders to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
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Hill V. Snyder. Explore Case.
Michigan
Sep 2017
Youth LWOP

Smart Justice

Hill v. Snyder

VICTORY: Federal Judge strikes down Michigan parole statute condemning youthful offenders to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Hill V. Snyder. Explore Case.
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