LIVING WITH CONVICTION

Constitutional Relief: In 2023, Living with Conviction prioritized growing its peer-to-peer, post-conviction Legal Empowerment Program by helping people understand and exercise their rights to constitutional relief under the Washington State Supreme Court's State v. Blake decision, holding the state's drug possession statute violates the federal and state constitutional rights to due process. Living with Conviction's Legal Empowerment team consists of formerly incarcerated navigators who work directly with their peers, with the support and oversight of attorneys. The organization does not provide legal advice or representation, but refers people to attorneys and representation, as needed or requested. In its first year serving individuals impacted by the Washington State Supreme Court's State v. Blake decision, Living with Conviction's formerly incarcerated navigators helped 184 people figure out if they were eligible for State v. Blake relief, and if so, understand and exercise their rights to constitutional relief in 337 cases. This work was undertaken in 31 of 39 counties.

Relief from Felony Court Debt: In 2023, Living with Conviction prioritized growing its peer-to-peer, post-conviction Legal Empowerment Program by helping people understand and exercise their statutory rights to request a waiver of their felony court debt, called legal financial obligations or LFOs, which have been accruing 12% to 50% interest and thus are overly burdensome and criminalize poverty. With the assistance of Living with Conviction's formerly incarcerated navigators, 125 people with court debt exercised their rights to request a reduction of their felony court debt in 387 cases, resulting in $1,838,594.85 in court debt waived, without the direct assistance of attorneys. This work was undertaken in 12 of Washington State's 39 counties. A key cross-cutting activity of Living with Conviction's Legal Empowerment Program is creating plain language legal education materials, including infographics and videos, shared via its partners and social media channels, among other content.