An Inspiring Show of Bipartisan Support for Second Chance Legislation
At a time when there’s little to celebrate politically, it was inspiring to see so much momentum around second chance legislation at the PA State Capitol today. Advocates from across the state met with elected officials to share a new report from the Abolitionist Law Center on compassionate release and encourage legislators to support medical and geriatric parole bills.
Then we gathered for a press conference where Rep. Tim Briggs reintroduced HB443, a felony murder reform bill that will end Death By Incarceration for second-degree murder. A number of bills are in motion with bipartisan support, and we were thrilled to see elected officials from both sides of the aisle standing shoulder to shoulder to support second chances for incarcerated people who have turned their lives around. Thank you to Rep. Rick Krajewski, Rep. Andre Carroll, Senator Sharif Street, Rep. Ben Maxman, Senator Camera Bartolotta, Rep. Chris Rabb, Rep. Tarik Kahn, Rep. Gina Curry, Rep. Tim Briggs, and Philadelphia City Councilmember Kendra Brooks for standing with us in the fight for a more compassionate system.
Christina Reyes, a community leader who’s lost loved ones to gun violence and loved ones to prison, said, “We know that prisons don’t rehabilitate people. People rehabilitate themselves despite the environment our society has put them in.” We heard from a number of speakers today who did the hard work of transformation and now bring that wisdom into our communities. One of those individuals, John Thompson, a former juvenile lifer who was given a second chance when the Supreme Court ruled it unconstitutional to mandate DBI for minors, said many of the men who mentored him and helped him grow into the person he is today are still behind bars. He said it doesn't make sense for him to be free while they're still locked up just because they were a few years older when they committed a crime.
We are grateful to Straight Ahead for leading this effort to pass second chance legislation, and to the Human Rights Coalition, Let's Get Free, FAMM, Free the Ballot and many more for their tireless work to bring people home from prison and build real community safety. Watch the full press conference below!
