Fair and Just Prosecution

🚨 Leadership News: Fair and Just Prosecution is thrilled to announce civil rights champion and former Florida State Attorney Aramis Ayala as our new Executive Director! 🧵

AI is rapidly shaping the justice system, but can it be trusted? Roy Austin Jr. unpacks the “neutrality myth” and explains why unchecked AI can reinforce bias across policing, courts, and corrections. A must-listen conversation: innovatingjustice.org/resources/ai-j…

After strong results in Bed-Stuy, DA Gonzalez is expanding Project Restore, a violence intervention program that connects young people to education, jobs, mentorship, and support. Fewer shootings. More opportunities. Increased public safety. Learn more: brooklynpaper.com/brooklyn-da-pr…

We are so excited to announce the launch of the podcast “Before They Could Dream,” a joint project between the @AspenFCS, the CFSY, and @GreenBuzzAgency! Before They Could Dream exposes a system most Americans rarely see and what happens when the law decides a child’s future.

Racial discrimination in jury selection deprives defendants of a fair trial, excludes citizens from one of the most important civic duties in a democracy, and undermines public trust in the justice system — particularly in capital cases where the stakes are life and death.

Recently uncovered prosecutors’ notes indicate that Black prospective jurors were struck because of their race — conduct that violates the constitutional protections established in Batson v. Kentucky.

FJP filed an amicus brief with the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals and then SCOTUS in Ex Parte Cedric Allen Ricks, urging the Courts to stay Mr. Rick’s execution and grant habeas relief in light of newly disclosed evidence demonstrating racial discrimination in jury selection.

4/ Allowing a death sentence to proceed under these circumstances would not only be a grave miscarriage of justice, but it would also further damage confidence in the courts and the justice system as a whole.

3/ “When racial discrimination shapes who sits on a jury, the result is not simply flawed, it is fundamentally unjust,” said FJP ED Ayala. Read our full statement: fairandjustprosecution.org/press-releases…

1/ FJP has filed a brief in Ex Parte Cedric Allen Ricks, urging the Court to grant habeas relief in light of newly disclosed evidence demonstrating racial discrimination in jury selection during Mr. Ricks’s capital trial. Mr. Ricks is scheduled for execution on March 11, 2026.

A new report from @SentencingProj details how prior convictions can add years, even decades, to prison sentences without evidence of improved public safety. These enhancements fuel excessive punishment & racial disparities. Learn more: sentencingproject.org/reports/re-pun…

HCAO statement on U.S. Department of Justice caving on “investigation” into office policy

FJP condemns the admin's move to block Minnesota’s investigation into the killing of Alex Pretti. The federal government must ensure independent probes of all federal deadly force incidents, cooperate with local investigators & deliver real accountability. theusconstitution.org/news/50-organi…

New data shows Ramsey County’s youth restorative justice model is delivering public safety and healing: youth whose first cases were resolved through community-based programs had up to 66% lower risk of reoffending, with reduced racial disparities. cbsnews.com/minnesota/news…

Racial inequities in housing, policing, and sentencing continue to shape who is drawn into the criminal legal system. The data show clear disparities, particularly for Black communities. @PrisonPolicy ’s new resource compiles the research in one place: prisonpolicy.org/research/racia…

ICYMI: FJP, LEAP, and current and former prosecutors and law enforcement leaders filed a Supreme Court amicus brief urging strong enforcement of constitutional protections against racial discrimination in jury selection. Read more: fairandjustprosecution.org/press-releases…

CREW and 18 other groups urge Congress to oppose a new bill that would give the president direct authority to select the DC attorney general. DC residents deserve an independent, democratically-elected AG who fights for the interests of the people. citizensforethics.org/legal-action/l…

3/ “Prosecutors carry a unique responsibility to uphold the Constitution and ensure justice is administered fairly,” said FJP ED Ayala. “Racial discrimination in jury selection violates that duty.” Learn more: fairandjustprosecution.org/press-releases…

2/ The brief explains that allowing state courts to insulate discriminatory jury strikes from judicial review represents an extreme malfunction of the criminal justice system that federal courts must step in to correct.

1/ FJP, joined by @PoliceForReform and other law enforcement leaders filed an amicus brief in Pitchford v. Cain, a case the United States Supreme Court will hear this term addressing racial discrimination in jury selection and the enforcement of Batson v. Kentucky.