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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On Jan. 6, 2015, the House of Representatives adopted a rule that requires the House Judiciary Committee to be afforded an opportunity to review any bill containing new criminalization.
In March 2012, Sen. Lisa Murkowski introduced a bill in Congress called the Fairness in Disclosure of Evidence Act of 2012. The bill would codify the duty of the government to promptly disclose evidence that is favorable to the defense. If passed, this legislation may provide strong impetus to a discovery reform effort on the state level.
The results of the first phase of a project to review FBI microscopic hair analysis testimony and lab reports produced the staggering revelation that FBI examiner testimony in at least 90 percent of the trial transcripts analyzed contained erroneous statements. This development likely will serve as a milestone in the quest for forensic science reform.
The “trial penalty” refers to the substantial difference between the sentence offered in a plea offer prior to trial versus the longer sentence a defendant receives if convicted at trial. The manipulation of the potential penalty creates pressure to waive the right to a trial. With the launch of the Trial Penalty Report, NACDL hopes to begin a reform movement.
Mercy does not surface often on death row. That is what makes the story of Jason McGehee so remarkable.
Capital punishment is on the wane. Executions and the number of states that permit capital punishment both declined in 2012. Moreover, the ABA Death Penalty Due Process Review Project identified 12 distinct flaws that are prevalent in jurisdictions that still allow capital punishment. These flaws create an unacceptably high risk of injustice and inadequate safeguards to minimize the potential that innocent people will be executed.
The right to trial, while alive in principle, is on life support in practice. NACDL is determined to revive this right and to confront and reform the systemic factors that have made the risk and cost of a trial so extreme that even innocent individuals routinely plead guilty.
Congress ostensibly created the “S” Visa program to promote national security by incentivizing foreign nationals to provide information to deter terrorist attacks. Does the program work as intended?
The Election Integrity Act passed by Georgia contains numerous textbook examples of overcriminalization.
The success of NACDL’s work depends on the organization’s ability to field a first-rate team. NACDL recently elected two new board members and filled several staff positions.
In March 2021, NACDL and NYSACDL released the trial penalty report. The report defines what practices are encompassed by the trial penalty, identifies the underlying causes, depicts it through profiles of individuals, and proposes concrete reforms to curtail the prevalence of the trial penalty.
In December 2020, NACDL released model legislation and an accompanying report discussing “second look” legislation. The proposed legislation is a fully developed draft bill for consideration by the states.
In the report released November 2020, NACDL provided an in-depth analysis of risk assessment instruments that demystifies the process by which they are developed and applied in practice.
Not many people could have imagined that the U.S. Capitol would come under assault. No one thought 500,000 people would die from the coronavirus. Yet there is real hope.
Until the Sixth Amendment is understood to provide a right to clemency counsel or legislatures provide for counsel at this stage of the legal process, few avenues exist to secure the assistance of counsel for those with limited resources. People with sufficient income will hire lawyers to help them, but everyone should have the same opportunity.
