Blog
HEART Campaign Heads to the Wake County Commission
Members of the Raleigh HEART Coalition attended the Wake County Commission budget work session. We asked the county to support and work with the City of Raleigh to create alternative crisis response teams. The coalition brought over 60 attendees out to the meeting,...
Refusing to be Silenced
On May 20, Dawn Blagrove joined a panel about how communities fight back against oppressive legal systems in the criminal and family courts. These systems mistreat citizens, but we can take back our power through court watching, participatory defense, and community....
We Sued Tyrrell County Over Racist Monument!
Emancipate NC filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of The Concerned Citizens of Tyrrell County to remove the Confederate monument “in appreciation of our faithful slaves.” We argue that this racist government speech violates the Equal Protection Clause of the...
TYRRELL RESIDENTS FILE FEDERAL RACIAL DISCRIMINATION SUIT AGAINST TYRRELL COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
Lawsuit asserts courthouse monument to “Faithful Slaves”—the only monument of its kind in the United States—amounts to unlawful and racially-discriminatory government speech CONTACT: Ian Mance – (828) 719-5755, ian@emancipatenc.orgJaelyn Miller – (910) 228-3741,...
Congrats to James Kelliher
James Kelliher won a reversal of his new sentence at the Court of Appeals last week after the trial court ignored rulings from the State Supreme Court. Once serving a de facto life sentence, Kelliher is now back to...
Decriminalize Marijuana!
The DEA is prepared to support the move to reclassify marijuana as a less dangerous drug, from Schedule I to Schedule III. Dawn was interviewed about the significant impacts of such a rescheduling. Dawn stated: “We would like to see marijuana descheduled...
Letter to UNC
Emancipate NC has partnered with ACLU-NC, Palestine Legal, and the National Lawyers Guild-NC to draft a letter to UNC-CH Counsel regarding recent actions by UNC-Chapel Hill against student protestors espousing speech in support of a ceasefire...
HEART Letter Campaign
Unarmed community response teams – including EMTs, mental health clinicians, and peer support specialists – have proven to reduce crime, hospitalizations, and jail populations. The City of Raleigh is very close to fulfilling the desire of Raleigh residents for such...
Inconsistent Access to Body Camera Video
There is an inconsistency across police departments when it comes to releasing body camera footage to the public. Cities have varying stances in their response to requests for this law enforcement footage. Judges are more inclined to grant requests for video...
Fight For Jail Transparency Continues
On May 6th, UNC Chapel Hill law students Nikolai Wise and John Schengber, joined by Elizabeth Simpson, argued on behalf of Emancipate NC for the immediate release of an unredacted Durham County Jail policy manual. Emancipate NC has been...
“Unmasking” Bill infringes on Protestors’ Rights
Kerwin Pittman and Dawn Blagrove spoke to the North Carolina General Assembly earlier this week about the harmful new bill proposed titled “Unmasking Mobs and Criminals.” The bill was presented to the Senate Judiciary Committee...
New Toolkit: Complaints Against School Resource Officers
Emancipate NC has teamed up with Legal Aid, Advancement Project, and the Education Justice Initiative to provide a toolkit to support parents and students impacted by SRO misconduct. Please share this resource with anyone whose rights have been violated by School...
The Assembly Covers “The Smell Test”
Photo Credit Cornell Watson for The Assembly The Assembly quoted an Emancipate NC amicus brief written by Elizabeth Simpson this month in an article detailing the current status of appellate litigation about the odor of cannabis. Defense...
Towards Abolishing Family Policing
On April 19, 2024, Dawn served as a panelist on “Nurturing Freedom Dreams through Abolition” at the University of Miami School of Law, and argued for an end to the systemic policing of families. Moderated by Corey B. Best, the panelists were Allison...
More Second Chances, Please!
By April Barber Scales (Justice League Fellow) and Anthony Willis We have been free — out of prison — for two years. If you had asked us five years ago if we would be where we are now, we would have said no. Both of us were convicted as juveniles (15 and 16 years old)...