Our Mission
Southern Coalition for Social Justice’s (SCSJ) Justice System Reform Program promotes social, economic, and racial justice by focusing on directly affected communities who bear the brunt of our deeply flawed and intractably racist system of mass incarceration. Informed and led by community input, we use litigation, organizing, issue advocacy campaigns, communications, and expert policy analysis in a braided approach to disrupt, dismantle, and reimagine. Our work seeks to support, protect, and empower safe and healthy communities while creating a less punitive, more accountable criminal legal system.
Our Work
Support Second Chances
We focus on helping individuals who have experienced involvement with the criminal legal system to navigate the reentry process.
End Mass Incarceration
SCSJ seeks to reduce the number of people entering and remaining in the criminal legal system.
Promote Youth Justice
SCSJ supports communities of color and grassroots organizations working to end the over-criminalization of youth.
Reframing Public Safety
SCSJ explores and interrogates policies and practices that increase public safety and center justice for all.
How We Advance Justice System Reform
Education & Resources
SCSJ is committed to empowering community members through education. We provide digital and physical educational resources that advocate for accessible expungement processes, support the decriminalization of youth, and encourage community members to know their legal rights.
Accountability Litigation
SCSJ holds state and local officials accountable through litigation when they abuse their authority. Representing historically marginalized individuals and communities, we initiate lawsuits against municipalities, counties, and other governmental entities to ensure that unlawful or unconstitutional practices and policies cease.
Investing in Youth Justice
SCSJ envisions a future in which young people of color attend schools that lift them up, not pat them down. Through opportunities like Youth Justice Project, we invest in mentorship-based programs to achieve educational justice and liberation.
Justice System Reform Resources
Our Cases
State v. James Richardson
James Richardson is an innocent man serving a life sentence for a crime he did not commit. In 2011, James Richardson was arrested and capitally charged with the murders of Landon Blackley and Andrew Kirby in Pitt County, NC. Following a hotly contested trial, James was convicted and given two life sentences.
Read More State v. James Richardson
Karon Joye
SCSJ is submitting a clemency petition to the Juvenile Sentencing Review Board (JSRB) on behalf of Karon Joye. Karon was sentenced to over 34 years in prison for a crime he committed when he was 14 years old.
Read More Karon Joye
Justice System Reform News
Warnings About Police in Schools: SCSJ Releases Memo to Fayetteville City Officials
FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. (July 10, 2024) — Southern Coalition for Social Justice (SCSJ) recommends Fayetteville keeps its schools police-free in a memo addressing the city’s proposal to replace school resource officers with members of Fayetteville Police Department ahead of a Thursday City Council vote. After the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office pulled its officers out of its…
Read More Warnings About Police in Schools: SCSJ Releases Memo to Fayetteville City Officials
SCSJ Statements on Supreme Court OK’ing Punishment for Sleeping While Unhoused
WASHINGTON, D.C. (June 28, 2024) — In a 6-3 vote, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled penalizing unhoused people for sleeping outside when there is no available shelter does not violate the U.S. Constitution’s prohibition against “cruel and unusual” punishment. Southern Coalition for Social Justice’s Justice System Reform team released the following statements about the opinion…
Read More SCSJ Statements on Supreme Court OK’ing Punishment for Sleeping While Unhoused
Key Contacts
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Janki Kaneria Counsel, Justice System Reformjanki@scsj.org -
Jake Sussman Interim Chief Counsel, Justice System Reformjsussman@scsj.org
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Tanita Holmes Counsel, Justice System Reformtanita@scsj.org
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Sala Abdallah Community Organizersalaabdallah@scsj.org
