Return to Freedom Project

NACDL’s Return to Freedom Project helps those serving overly harsh sentences seek relief by partnering with partner organizations to recruit, train, and support pro bono volunteers to secure clemency, compassionate release, or expungement.

NACDL has long advocated for relief for individuals serving overly harsh sentences. The results of its advocacy are evident as states across the nation and political spectrum are now recognizing the human, economic, and social costs of these policies, and have enacted reforms. However, most of these reforms are not applied retroactively, thus leaving behind individuals already serving substantial sentences. The only avenue for those left languishing in America’s prisons is back-end relief such as clemency and compassionate release.

The impact of the United States criminal legal system does not end at the prison walls. There is a vast network of life-altering consequences millions who interact with the criminal legal system. As identified in the 2019 Shattering the Shackles of Collateral Consequences report, these penalties include restrictions on employment, housing, voting, and other opportunities. While some states have implemented mechanisms for the sealing or expunging criminal records, most are not automatic.

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Supported by NFCJ

The NACDL Foundation for Criminal Justice preserves and promotes the core values of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers and the American criminal justice system.

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NACDL’s Return to Freedom Project (R2F) helps those languishing in prison by partnering with different organizations to recruit, train, and support pro bono volunteers on clemency, compassionate release, and expungement. There are powerful advocates in every state fighting on behalf those left behind, and the R2F partners with these groups to support and amplify their work.

The R2F unites projects such as the Excessive Sentence Project, the Trial Penalty Clemency Project, the Cannabis Justice Initiative, and other clemency and compassionate release efforts under a single banner at NACDL.

Since the launch of the NACDL/FAMM State Clemency Project in 2017, the Return to Freedom Initiatives have:

Recruited over 2,320 volunteers from 550 firms and other organizations,
Received over 10,000 applications for assistance,
Placed 1,520 cases with firms,
Filed 1,439 petitions and motions for relief with our Federal/state/local public defender partners,
Regained freedom for 292 individuals,
Reduced sentences by 1,685 years, and
Freed 37 Lifers (or life equivalent).

Alfred McKenzie Award news release 6/16/2021

Active Projects

News Releases

News Release ~ Biden Clemency December 12

National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers Praises Biden Clemency Announcement, Calls for Further Action – Washington, DC (December 12, 2024) – In his latest act of clemency, President Biden has pardoned 39 individuals and commuted the sentences of 1,500 people released on CARES Act home confinement. Among these individuals are clients of NACDL’s Return to Freedom Project. The National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) commends President Biden for what we are hopeful will not be the last exercise of his executive power.
News Release ~ 10/06/2022

NACDL Applauds Historic Presidential Pardons to Address Failed War on Drugs – Washington, DC (Oct. 6, 2022) – President Biden made an unprecedented announcement on October 6, 2022, in response to the years of failed legislation and politics that have incarcerated thousands of people for simple, non-violent drug offenses. President Biden will be pardoning all prior federal offenses of simple possession of marijuana, a bold move which will provide relief to thousands of people with simple drug convictions.
News Release ~ 04/26/2022

National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers Praises Recent Biden Administration Commutations, Pardons, and Reentry Initiatives, Calls on White House to Increase Clemency Grants – Washington, DC (April 26, 2022) – Today, the Biden administration granted three pardons, commuted 75 sentences, and announced a series of initiatives to support meaningful second chances for formerly incarcerated individuals. These initiatives include job training for those incarcerated in federal prisons and expanded access to critical services such as education, healthcare, and housing for those returning...
News Release ~ 01/19/2022

Virginia Redemption Project Secures Release, Continues Work In Hopes For More -- Washington, DC (Jan. 19, 2022) – Last week, one of NACDL’s Return to Freedom efforts, the Virginia Redemption Project, secured its first conditional pardon grant. This comes after two additional grants which were supported by the Virginia Redemption Project.
News Release ~ 08/19/2021

FAMM, NACDL and Washington Lawyers’ Committee Launch CARES Act Home Confinement Clearinghouse -- Washington, DC (Aug. 19, 2021) – FAMM, the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL), and the Washington Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs (WLC) launched the “CARES Act Home Confinement Clearinghouse” today in an effort to prevent up to 4,000 people on CARES Act home confinement from returning to prison.

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Return to Freedom Project

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