Prisoner Rights and Criminal Justice
We are committed to ensuring that all individuals within the criminal justice system receive equitable treatment and access to quality legal representation. In 2024, the firm successfully helped incarcerated clients secure early releases and played a key role in pushing for regulatory changes.
Motion for Compassionate Release Granted—Pro Bono Client Released 26 Years Early
Pro bono client Davon Williams was granted compassionate release after serving 19 years in prison, thanks to a Jenner team’s victory. In 2006, Davon was convicted of first-degree murder, despite strong physical evidence suggesting he did not commit the crime. After 10 unsuccessful attempts by previous lawyers to secure his release, the team was able to secure compassionate release—26 years earlier than his projected release date.
The team emphasized Davon’s impeccable prison record and lack of evidence against him, convincing the Court that Davon was not a danger to any other person or the community. The team also underscored the extraordinary circumstances of his case and family situation, including two disabled grandparents with dementia.
The team was led by Partners Peter Brennan and Caroline Cease and included support from Associates Vaughn Olson and Carolina Abboud, former Associate Nicole Allicock, and former Junior Litigation Paralegal Grace Liberman.
Decades-Long Efforts Lead to Groundbreaking FCC Order Reforming Abusive Practices and Eliminating Unreasonable Rates for Incarcerated People
After a decades-long effort, a Jenner & Block team helped secure an order from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), lowering exorbitant rates and prohibiting fees for Incarcerated People’s Communications Services (IPCS) in carceral facilities.
The order, adopted on July 18, is the FCC’s first step in implementing the Martha Wright-Reed Just and Reasonable Communications Act of 2022, which authorizes the FCC to regulate prices and fees for any audio or video call made by an incarcerated person. This includes reducing the maximum rate that can be charged to incarcerated people for voice calls by more than half and establishes the first interim rate caps for video calls.
The team represented the Wright Petitioners, named after the late Martha Wright, as one of the advocacy groups and civil rights organizations urging the FCC to reform audio and video rates and fees.
Partner Rebekah Goodheart has worked on this issue for over ten years, and Special Counsel Gregory R. Capobianco has worked on it for more than seven years.
“These rates have burdened incarcerated people and their families for far too long. We applaud the FCC for taking this important and monumental action. This order serves as a transformative win, and I am proud to have worked on this significant issue for the past decade,” Rebekah said.
The Jenner team also included Of Counsel Eric Einhorn, Associates Dagny Lu and Christian Hatten, Practice Assistant Beth Gulden, and Paralegal Supervisor Cheryl Olson.
The Benton Institute for Broadband & Society acknowledged the team's work on this case in a release, referring to them as "relentless public interest advocates" that "paved the way for today's action."
Team Earns Early Release for Incarcerated Pro Bono Client
Jenner & Block won a victory for a pro bono client who was incarcerated at Federal Correctional Institution (FCI) Dublin, a low-security women’s facility in California that closed earlier this year. Sexual abuse at the hands of Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) officers (and even a warden) was so rampant that the facility became known as “the rape club.”
The team argued that the abuse our client suffered at the hands of BOP officials, her medical conditions, and her childcare needs at home were extraordinary and compelling circumstances under the US Sentencing Commission’s guidelines and warranted a sentence reduction to time served.
The prosecutors stipulated to the motion and the judge ordered that our client be released and permitted to return home to her parents and four children.
The team was led by Partners Sam Feder and Keisha Stanford, Special Counsel Andrew Sullivan, and Associate Kate Abendroth. Junior Paralegal Kenyon North assisted, along with former Paralegal Bethany Frame and former Summer Associates Caleb Jeffreys and Naji Thompson.
Landmark Ruling Upholds Prisoners' Right to Seek Justice Over Inadequate Medical Care
In February 2020, John Hudson, an inmate at Danville Correctional Center, experienced severe pain in his thumb, a symptom that was ignored by facility physicians for an entire year. By the time his condition was properly diagnosed, it had progressed to an aggressive form of cancer in his hand, resulting in the partial amputation of his left thumb.
John filed a Section 1983 lawsuit against Wexford Health Sources, the Illinois Department of Corrections’ (IDOC) medical provider, and its employees. A dedicated team from Jenner & Block took on his case, working tirelessly to expose systemic issues within the IDOC grievance process and advocating for accountability. The team’s investigation revealed a deeply flawed system where prisoners’ grievances often went unanswered, leaving many without meaningful recourse or review.
After two years of litigation, the Court held a Pavey hearing to determine whether John had exhausted his administrative remedies before filing his lawsuit. Following the day-long hearing and post-hearing briefing, now-Partner Lindsey Lusk delivered a compelling closing argument, highlighting three critical failures in the IDOC grievance process: prisoners lack control over their filed grievances, medical grievances are not meaningfully reviewed, and many grievances receive no response at all.
“We wanted the Court to understand that the grievance system IDOC has in place is wholly deficient, particularly with respect to medical grievances,” Lindsey said following the closing. “Prisoners face an almost impossible battle in trying to get any meaningful response to their grievances, and IDOC admitted that medical grievances, in particular, are not substantively reviewed. Given these deficiencies, the grievance system has become both a sword and shield to avoid any accountability for prisoners’ medical needs. That cannot be right under the law.”
On February 14, 2024, the court issued a landmark 33-page opinion, finding that John had exhausted all administrative remedies and allowing his claims to proceed. Additionally, the court found the IDOC's grievance process for medical issues flawed and ruled that prisoners could bypass it and proceed directly to litigation.
This ruling sets a significant precedent in the Seventh Circuit, potentially empowering more incarcerated individuals facing inadequate medical care to seek justice through the courts. The case is ongoing.
The Jenner & Block team is led by now-Partner Lindsey and Partner Joel Pelz and includes Partner Andrew Merrick and Associates Amanda Holme, Rachel Magaziner, Adam Abdel-Mageed, Femi Masha, and Vaughn Olson. The team also received valuable assistance from former Associates Emma Costello, Ethan Levy, and Courtney Shier as well as from former Paralegal Sophia Goebel.
Fighting Injustice for Incarcerated Clients at Angola Prison
When the non-profit legal advocacy organization Rights Behind Bars reached out to Jenner & Block on behalf of two men with mental health conditions who had endured harrowing treatment at Louisiana State Penitentiary—commonly known as Angola Prison—our lawyers rose to the occasion.
Joshua Folks’ ordeal began during pretrial detention on a minor misdemeanor. Despite the low-level charge, he was transferred to Angola where he spent 17 months in solitary confinement, including weeks strapped to a bed in four-point restraints. The lack of mobility caused severe physical harm, requiring him to undergo therapy to relearn how to walk. Corey Adams similarly suffered in solitary confinement, punished for self-harming behaviors linked to his mental health.
Angola’s disciplinary policies punish individuals for manifestations of their mental illnesses, creating a vicious cycle where mental health deteriorates, self-harm increases, and harsher punishments follow. Isolated from meaningful human interaction and rehabilitation programs, prisoners like Corey and Joshua are effectively abandoned.
With the help from Jenner & Block, Rights Behind Bars, and Louisiana-based firm Most & Associates, Corey and Joshua are challenging these practices within the Fifth Circuit, arguing that these policies violate constitutional protections and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). They aim to reform the prison’s treatment of individuals with mental health conditions, ensuring humane care instead of isolation.
The Jenner team includes Partners Elizabeth Edmondson and Ken Beale, Associates Julius Mitchell, Molly Oberstein-Allen, Emanuel Powell III, and Sarah Purtill.
From Wrongful Conviction to $5 Million Settlement: Patrick Pursley’s Journey
In December 2024, Patrick Pursley, a former pro bono client of Jenner & Block, reached a $5 million settlement in a lawsuit against the City of Rockford. This settlement comes nearly 30 years after his wrongful conviction, which was based primarily on flawed forensic testimony. Mr. Pursley was represented in this most recent matter by another firm, who also handled the civil suit and certificate of innocence following Jenner & Block’s earlier pro bono representation.
In 1993, Mr. Pursley was wrongfully convicted of murder in Winnebago County, Illinois. The state's case against him was primarily based on erroneous testimony from a ballistics examiner. The conviction lacked critical pieces of evidence such as eyewitness identification, a confession, or any DNA or fingerprint evidence.
In 2007, Illinois amended its post-conviction forensic testing statute to provide defendants with the opportunity to request a re-examination of ballistic evidence, including comparison to national databases. With the help of the Center on Wrongful Convictions, Mr. Pursley’s team filed the first-ever motion in Illinois for ballistics comparisons under this new law. Initially denied, the motion was overturned on appeal in 2011. The National Integrated Ballistics Identification Network database then failed to link the crime scene evidence to Mr. Pursley’s firearm. Further forensic analysis by leading experts confirmed that neither the bullets nor the cartridge cases found at the crime scene came from Mr. Pursley's weapon.
Throughout this long journey, Mr. Pursley received support from a dedicated team at Jenner. After spending nearly 24 years wrongfully imprisoned, Mr. Pursley was acquitted in 2019 following a bench trial that was led by Partners Robert R. Stauffer and Andrew W. Vail, and also included former Associates Sara Kim, Monika N. Kothari, Kevin J. Murphy, and Ashley Waddell Tingstad. Over the course of more than a decade, the firm dedicated over 9,500 pro bono hours to exonerate Mr. Pursley.
In 2021, a certificate of innocence was granted to Mr. Pursley thanks to the diligent work of another firm. Additionally, the $5 million settlement reached in 2024 was the result of their tireless efforts in rectifying the injustice Mr. Pursley faced.
This case serves as a powerful reminder of the devastating consequences of wrongful convictions and the importance of dedicated legal advocacy in correcting injustices.
Read more about this case and watch Mr. Pursley discuss the impact of the certificate of innocence he received in 2021.
Tenth Circuit Rules in Favor of Appellants in Case Supported by Jenner & Block Amicus Brief
In an amicus brief filed on behalf of Rights Behind Bars, National Police Accountability Center, the Southern Center for Human Rights, and MacArthur Justice Center, a Jenner team argued that predicating municipal liability for a sexual assault by a sheriff on whether it was committed for personal gratification was an untenable and unconstitutional distinction.
The Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals agreed in Whitson v. Hanna, and it held that the Sheriff’s Department and the County were responsible for the actions of a Sedgwick County Sheriff who sexually assaulted an intellectually disabled woman while transporting her between two jails.
“I was grateful as always to have the chance to work on such important issue for prisoner’s rights. The team at Public Justice did an amazing job representing Ms. Biggs, and it was wonderful to get to support them by representing four organizations I deeply admire as amici,” said Associate Mary Marshall.
Mary, with supervision from Partner Jessica Ring Amunson, authored the brief that argued that incarcerated individuals who are assaulted by those responsible for their care deserve justice regardless of underlying motivations. Former associate Danny Li also assisted in brief drafting for the project.