A Coalition Committed to Criminal Justice Reform
Advocating for thoughtful and innovative solutions that will achieve equity and fairness.
Our coalition - the Allegheny Lawyers Initiative for Justice (ALIJ) - is comprised of defense attorneys, investigators, and social workers that have seen firsthand the criminal legal system's inequities and injustices. We have watched far too many families ripped apart when a father, son, mother, or daughter is shipped off to prison. We have seen far too many young lives senselessly ruined by a felony conviction. And far too many of those young people are Black and poor.
We have joined forces because we share a common desire for fairness and justice and we believe that we can draw on our unique experience representing the accused to advocate for smart and innovative solutions that will improve the local legal system.
Our Coalition
ALI is a coalition of attorneys, investigators, and social workers who dedicate their careers to protecting the rights of the accused. Collectively we’ve defended tens of thousands of people within the local criminal legal system. The members of our diverse coalition come from different socio-economic backgrounds, cultures, and races. Our members have worked in a wide array of fields and include former prosecutors and public defenders, former probation officers and federal law enforcement agents, and former judicial law clerks and law professors. We have experience working for governments, non-profits, and Pittsburgh’s leading civil law firms. We are small business owners who proudly serve as community leaders on nonprofit and school boards.
Defense Attorneys United for Change
This initiative originated from our shared commitment to serve our clients, their families, and the greater Allegheny County community by helping to shape and improve the criminal justice system.
How We Work to Transform the System
We take a multi-faceted approach to enacting change through media and issue advocacy, impact litigation, and data collection and analysis.
“The true measure of our character is how we treat the poor, the disfavored, the accused, the incarcerated, and the condemned.”
— Bryan Stevenson
Contact
Contact us to learn more about our initiative.
Email
info@ali4j.org
Phone
(412) 310-5942