Renewed War on Drugs, harsher charging policies, stepped-up criminalization of immigrants — in the current climate, joining the NACDL is more important than ever. Members of NACDL help to support the only national organization working at all levels of government to ensure that the voice of the defense bar is heard.
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NACDL is committed to enhancing the capacity of the criminal defense bar to safeguard fundamental constitutional rights.
NACDL harnesses the unique perspectives of NACDL members to advocate for policy and practice improvements in the criminal legal system.
NACDL envisions a society where all individuals receive fair, rational, and humane treatment within the criminal legal system.
NACDL’s mission is to serve as a leader, alongside diverse coalitions, in identifying and reforming flaws and inequities in the criminal legal system, and redressing systemic racism, and ensuring that its members and others in the criminal defense bar are fully equipped to serve all accused persons at the highest level.
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The problem of overcriminalization is multifaceted, with many aspects that pervade our criminal legal system, including the criminalization of conduct that is not harmful to society or others; criminal statutes that lack adequate mens rea, or intent, requirements; ambiguous and vague language in criminal statutes that provide insufficient notice and insufficient limitation on what conduct is criminalized; and the imposition of vicarious liability with insufficient requirement that the charged person was involved in, or even knew about, the underlying conduct.
The undersigned groups urge you to oppose the Stopping Harmful Image Exploitation and Limiting Distribution (SHIELD) Act of 2023 (S. 412), which would create a new federal crime carrying a one-to-five-year prison sentence for sharing intimate photos of a person without that person’s consent. We recognize that this bill is well intentioned, but we are concerned that it will sweep in and criminalize innocent conduct and worsen the trial penalty that many criminal defendants—including many people who are actually innocent—face in our justice system.
The "Free Flow of lnformation Act" (S. 448; H.R. 985) … was reintroduced in the 111th Congress. Soon after this legislation was introduced in the 110th Congress (S. 2035; H.R. 2102), NACDL formed its Reporters' Shield Legislation Task Force to study the proposed law and ascertain the potential implications for the integrity and fairness of our criminal justice system. I write ... to explain our specific concerns with the language of the most recent versions and to articulate our view that any legislation of this nature not be used to undermine the criminal justice process.
Though well-intentioned, the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) is a broad and vague statute and any efforts should be focused on narrowing and clarifying its nebulous rules. NACDL believes that existing Department of Justice (DOJ) enforcement authority is sufficient to enforce the statute, as recent high-profile cases have shown, and that granting additional enforcement tools is neither warranted nor worth the risk of overreach.
We urge the Judiciary Committee to amend the bill to make critically important improvements to Section 215 of the Patriot Act and to the material support statute. [referring to the USA PATRIOT Amendments Act of 2009 (H.R. 3845)]
Comments to the Department of Justice National Security Division responding to the department’s request for suggestions on clarifying and modernizing the implementing regulations of the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938 (FARA).
Asset Forfeiture Abuse Task Force co-chair E.E. (Bo) Edwards's testimony to the House Judiciary Committee regarding the Civil Asset Forfeiture Reform Act (H.R. 1916, 1995) and federal asset forfeiture programs.
Asset Forfeiture Abuse Task Force co-chairs E.E. (Bo) Edwards, David B. Smith, and Richard Troberman's written statement to the House Judiciary Committee regarding the Civil Asset Forfeiture Reform Act (H.R. 1916, 1995) and federal asset forfeiture programs.
Brief for National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers as Amicus Curiae in Support of Petitioners.
Letter to the House Judiciary Committee regarding penalties and prosecutorial requirements for revenge porn cases, as proposed in the Stopping Harmful Image Exploitation and Limiting Distribution (SHIELD) Act of 2019 (H.R. 2896).
Coalition letter to members of the Senate regarding Senator Patrick Leahy's amendment to the proposed Cybersecurity Act (S. 3414), which incorporates expanded violations and penalties of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA).
Letter with the National Association of Federal Defenders to members of the House regarding concerns for cases in tribal courts as addressed in the proposed Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2012 (H.R. 4970).
Board member and Forfeiture Committee chair David B. Smith's written statement to the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security regarding international money laundering and the U.S. financial system.
Board member Tim O'Toole's written statement to the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security regarding proposed changes to the laws governing public corruption charges, as outlined in the Clean Up Government Act of 2011 (H.R.2572).
Brief of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers as Amicus Curiae in Support of Evelyn Sineneng-Smith and Reversal of the Judgment Below.
