life without parole

Imagine Becoming A Shadow

A Letter to the United Nations In an effort to secure international support for the movement to end Death by Incarceration (DBI) sentences in the United States, the Abolitionist Law Center, Amistad Law Project, the Center for Constitutional Rights, the Drop LWOP Coalition, and the California Coalition of Women Prisoners collaborated with the University of …

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“Second Chances Don’t Diminish Justice, But Fulfill It”

April is Second Chances Month, and while the state paints “victims” in opposition to second chances for people in prison, a growing network of people identifying as “dual victims” are exposing the lie behind this narrative. Dual victims are people who have lost loved ones to interpersonal violence and mass incarceration. Their lived experiences demonstrate …

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Virtual Life Sentences: the Least Discussed Form of Death by Incarceration

The following piece was written by 63-year-old Frederick Page, who was born and raised in North Philadelphia and has served 34 years of a virtual life sentence. In 1989, when Frederick was 29 years old, he was convicted of 17 misdemeanor burglaries and sentenced to 42 ½ to 102 years. Following his sentencing, Frederick said …

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Survivor Stories: Testimonies of Triumph and Tragedy

This past week we hosted a panel highlighting the voices of survivors, both of street violence and to prisons. We were joined by a few powerful women: Antoinette Kreiselmeier is a justice reform advocate. Movita Johnson Harrell is a retired PA State Rep and former Chief of Victim Services and Restorative Justice at the Philadelphia …

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The Origin Story of Life Without Parole in Pennsylvania

The author of the following piece, Jon E. Yount, died by suicide at State Correctional Institution Greene in 2012 while serving a life sentence imposed during 1966. Yount wrote this piece in February 2004 while incarcerated at State Correctional Institution Huntingdon. In this article, Yount reveals the political nature of the erasure of the possibility …

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