Clorox Equal Justice Works Fellow Spotlight: Supporting Older Incarcerated People Through the Parole Process
The Clorox Company Foundation is supporting Equal Justice Works fellow Darby Aono-Shek at UnCommon Law, an Oakland-based organization fighting for incarcerated people's rights in California's parole system. UnCommon Law provides trauma-informed legal counseling to help prepare safe pathways home from prison and challenges illegal parole denials.
Aono-Shek's fellowship focuses on helping older incarcerated individuals, many of whom are Black and Latinx, challenge illegal parole denials. Her work includes direct representation and developing a comprehensive guide for filing habeas petitions without an attorney. This initiative aims to empower more incarcerated people to hold the parole board accountable, especially those who can't afford legal representation.
La Fondazione Clorox Company sta supportando la borsa di studio di Darby Aono-Shek di Equal Justice Works presso UnCommon Law, un'organizzazione con sede a Oakland che combatte per i diritti delle persone incarcerate nel sistema di libertà vigilata della California. UnCommon Law fornisce consulenza legale informata sul trauma per aiutare a preparare percorsi sicuri per il rientro a casa dopo la prigione e sfida i dinieghi di libertà vigilata illegali.
La borsa di studio di Aono-Shek si concentra sull'aiuto a individui incarcerati più anziani, molti dei quali sono neri e latini, a contestare i dinieghi di libertà vigilata illegali. Il suo lavoro include la rappresentanza diretta e lo sviluppo di una guida comprensiva per la presentazione di petizioni di habeas senza un avvocato. Questa iniziativa mira a responsabilizzare un numero maggiore di persone incarcerate a tenere il comitato per la libertà vigilata responsabile, specialmente quelle che non possono permettersi una rappresentanza legale.
La Fundación Clorox Company está apoyando a la becaria Darby Aono-Shek de Equal Justice Works en UnCommon Law, una organización con sede en Oakland que lucha por los derechos de las personas encarceladas en el sistema de libertad condicional de California. UnCommon Law proporciona asesoría legal informada sobre el trauma para ayudar a preparar vías seguras de regreso a casa desde la prisión y desafiar las denegaciones ilegales de libertad condicional.
La beca de Aono-Shek se centra en ayudar a individuos encarcelados mayores, muchos de los cuales son afroamericanos y latinx, a impugnar las denegaciones de libertad condicional ilegales. Su trabajo incluye representación directa y el desarrollo de una guía integral para presentar peticiones de hábeas corpus sin un abogado. Esta iniciativa tiene como objetivo empoderar a más personas encarceladas para exigir responsabilidad al consejo de libertad condicional, especialmente a aquellos que no pueden permitirse representación legal.
클로락스 컴퍼니 재단은 오클랜드에 본사를 둔 기관인 UnCommon Law에서 평등 정의 재단의 펠로우 Darby Aono-Shek을 지원하고 있습니다. 이 기관은 캘리포니아의 가석방 시스템에서 수감자들의 권리를 위해 싸우고 있습니다. UnCommon Law는 트라우마에 대한 인식을 바탕으로 한 법률 상담을 제공하여 교도소에서 안전하게 집으로 돌아갈 수 있는 길을 준비하고 불법적인 가석방 거부에 도전합니다.
Aono-Shek의 펠로우십은 노인 수감자를 도와 불법적인 가석방 거부에 이의를 제기하는 데 중점을 둡니다. 그녀의 작업은 직접적인 대리와 변호사 없이 해베어스 페티션을 제출하기 위한 포괄적인 가이드를 개발하는 것을 포함합니다. 이 이니셔티브는 재정적으로 법적 대리를 받을 수 없는 수감자들이 가석방 위원회를 책임지도록 하는 힘을 실어주고자 합니다.
La Fondation Clorox Company soutient la boursière Darby Aono-Shek d'Equal Justice Works chez UnCommon Law, une organisation basée à Oakland qui lutte pour les droits des personnes incarcérées dans le système de liberté conditionnelle de Californie. UnCommon Law offre une consultation juridique tenant compte du traumatisme pour aider à préparer des voies de retour en toute sécurité depuis la prison et conteste les refus de liberté conditionnelle illégaux.
Le boursier Aono-Shek se concentre sur l'aide aux individus incarcérés plus âgés, dont beaucoup sont noirs et latinx, pour contester les refus de liberté conditionnelle illégaux. Son travail comprend la représentation directe ainsi que le développement d'un guide complet pour déposer des pétitions de habeas sans avocat. Cette initiative vise à donner plus de pouvoir aux personnes incarcérées pour tenir le comité de libération conditionnelle responsable, en particulier celles qui ne peuvent pas se permettre une représentation légale.
Die Clorox Company Foundation unterstützt die Equal Justice Works Stipendiatin Darby Aono-Shek bei UnCommon Law, einer in Oakland ansässigen Organisation, die für die Rechte von inhaftierten Personen im kalifornischen Bewährungssystem kämpft. UnCommon Law bietet traumainformierte Rechtsberatung an, um sichere Wege aus dem Gefängnis zu bereiten und gegen illegale Bewährungsentzüge vorzugehen.
Das Stipendium von Aono-Shek konzentriert sich darauf, älteren inhaftierten Personen, von denen viele schwarz oder latinx sind, bei der Anfechtung illegaler Bewährungsentzüge zu helfen. Ihre Arbeit umfasst die direkte Vertretung und die Entwicklung eines umfassenden Leitfadens für die Einreichung von Habeas-Petitionen ohne Anwalt. Diese Initiative hat das Ziel, mehr inhaftierten Personen die Befugnis zu geben, den Bewährungsausschuss zur Verantwortung zu ziehen, insbesondere diejenigen, die sich keinen rechtlichen Beistand leisten können.
- Clorox Company Foundation is supporting social justice initiatives through Equal Justice Works fellowships
- UnCommon Law is providing legal representation and support for incarcerated individuals in the parole process
- None.
NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / September 2, 2024 / The Clorox Company
More than four years ago we made a commitment - through The Clorox Company Foundation - to help fight racism and inequality. Some of our financial commitment goes toward supporting Equal Justice Works fellows like Darby Aono-Shek. Darby is working with UnCommon Law to help older incarcerated people, many of whom are Black and Latinx, challenge their illegal parole denials.
Tell me a little bit about the organization where you work and what it does.
I work at an organization called UnCommon Law. We're based in Oakland, and we fight to ensure that people who are incarcerated in California have access to healing, justice and effective legal representation as they seek release through the parole hearing process. Our attorneys use trauma-informed legal counseling to unpack the underlying factors that contributed to a person's crime and help them prepare a safe pathway home from prison.
In addition to representing people at parole hearings, UnCommon Law uses litigation to challenge illegal parole denials and address systemic issues within the parole system. We also partner with legislators, community members, impacted families, and loved ones to support legislation that advances the freedom and well-being of incarcerated people.
How did you become involved in this field?
I've always known that I wanted to work with people in prison, but I didn't know anything about California's parole process until my first year of law school, when I took a class taught by UnCommon Law founder and executive director Keith Wattley.
It didn't take long for me to fall in love with UnCommon Law's work. As part of Keith's class, each student was paired with an incarcerated person who was navigating the parole process. I was in awe of the strength, courage and vulnerability that people showed going through the process. I thought, "How many attorneys get to learn from and feel inspired by their clients every day? I'd be the luckiest attorney in the world."
I interned with UnCommon Law during my second year of law school, and I joined the team full-time as an Equal Justice Works legal fellow in 2022.
What are some examples of the challenges that UnCommon Law's clients have faced?
In California, the parole board holds an extraordinary amount of power over people's lives with limited oversight to ensure that it wields that power legally. As a result, in some situations the parole board denies parole for illegal reasons, keeping people in prison for years beyond when the law says they should have been released.
For example, the parole board denied parole to a 69-year-old woman suffering from Parkinson's, early dementia and memory loss from an assault where she was knocked unconscious. Due to her memory issues, she often took pauses while answering the parole board's questions. The parole board denied her parole, claiming that her difficulty answering questions was proof that she was "manipulative" and "lacking in sincerity."
In California, parole denials must be challenged through habeas corpus petitions (a legal challenge to one's imprisonment), but there is no right to habeas counsel for these cases. As a result, pro se litigants (people who represent themselves without an attorney) provide a primary check on the parole board, but systemic barriers and a lack of support make it virtually impossible for most people to do so.
How has your work addressed those challenges?
My fellowship is focused on helping older people who are incarcerated challenge their illegal parole denials. I'm taking a two-pronged approach to accomplishing this: 1) assuming a caseload through direct representation; and 2) focusing on the many people who have been denied parole but don't have access to counsel.
I'm developing a comprehensive guide to filing habeas petitions without an attorney that will be available to people across California prisons. That way, more people can feel empowered to hold the parole board accountable, even if they can't afford an attorney.
View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from The Clorox Company on 3blmedia.com.
Contact Info:
Spokesperson: The Clorox Company
Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/clorox-company
Email: info@3blmedia.com
SOURCE: The Clorox Company
View the original press release on accesswire.com
FAQ
What is the focus of Darby Aono-Shek's Equal Justice Works fellowship supported by Clorox (CLX)?
How is UnCommon Law, supported by Clorox (CLX), addressing challenges in the California parole system?
What specific initiative is Clorox (CLX) supporting through the Equal Justice Works fellowship at UnCommon Law?
