Friday, September 18, 2020 | news
Yesterday, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court issued in Commonwealth v. Evelyn recognizing that an individual’s age should be considered when determining whether they feel free to leave an encounter with police. The court declined to make a similar categorical rule about whether race should be considered, though race may be considered in some circumstances. The […]
Monday, January 9, 2012 | news
On January 4, 2012, Maryland’s highest court issued a unanimous ruling in Richmond v. District Court of Maryland that guarantees the right of indigent defendants to have a lawyer present at their initial bail hearing. At this hearing which occurs shortly after an individual is arrested and detained, a District Court Commissioner determines whether there […]
Monday, February 13, 2023 | case-issue
Maryland Needs its Own Voting Rights Act The Maryland Voting Rights Act (MDVRA) Status: One Provision Partially Enacted, One Provision Passed One Chamber Maryland is the most diverse state on the East Coast, yet substantial racial disparities persist in both voter participation and local representation. The Maryland Voting Rights Act – a package of four […]
Sunday, March 17, 2013 | news
Today, the Maryland legislature voted to repeal its death penalty law. Once the Maryland Governor signs this legislation — which he introduced — into law, Maryland will become the sixth state in six years to acknowledge that capital punishment is a failed sentencing option. You can read more about it here.
Monday, May 6, 2013 | news
On May 3, 2013, Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley signed SB276 officially repealing the state’s death penalty. With this act, Maryland became the sixth state in six years to abolish the death penalty. In total, 18 states in the U.S., including Maryland, have abolished the death penalty. The NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF), celebrates […]
Tuesday, March 12, 2019 | news
Today, a federal judge in Maryland allowed a lawsuit to proceed against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) over its decision to rescind Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitian immigrants. The lawsuit, filed by the NAACP Legal Defense Fund (LDF) and Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP on behalf of the NAACP, Haitian Women for […]
Tuesday, March 25, 2025 | news
Media Contact: Vasuki Wilson, 202.294.2342,vasuki@risepublic.com Troi Barnes, media@naacpldf.org A coalition of more than 30 civil rights, racial justice, criminal legal system reform, and faith-based organizations, including the University of Baltimore School of Law Center for Criminal Justice Reform, Legal Defense Fund (LDF), Justice Policy Institute, and Gibson-Banks Center for Race and the Law at the […]
Monday, January 20, 2025 | news
Eight Organizations Join Together on January 20 (Washington, DC, January 20, 2025) – Building from a first term riddled with policies that violated human rights, the incoming Trump administration has proposed a dangerous path for the future. Some of the policies championed by President Trump and his surrogates during the campaign could also give new […]
Monday, January 21, 2019 | news
On Martin Luther King Jr. Day LDF President and Director-Counsel Sherrilyn Ifill and Andrea Mitchell discuss the importance of focusing on the policies that impact rather than call out the President as a racist.
Friday, January 13, 2017 | news
This weekend, we honor the life, leadership, and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. LDF was privileged to represent Dr. King on numerous occasions: In 1965 during the Selma marches when LDF litigated to lift an injunction placed on demonstrators fighting for their right to vote — read LDF’s historical legal documents that […]
