CT-REQ-2995 Advancing Racial Justice Pro Bono Report 01 TW V3 - Flipbook - Page 9
Post-conviction relief
After 38 years in a Louisiana prison, and just weeks after his 70th birthday, John Ray was released
pursuant to a deal reached with the District Attorney. As part of that deal, his 1986 seconddegree murder conviction was vacated on the basis that, as highlighted in our post-conviction
brief, his trial counsel performed inadequately, he was convicted by a non-unanimous jury (now
unconstitutional under U.S. Supreme Court precedent), and he exhibited exemplary behavior while
incarcerated and is likely to transition back to society without issue.
Through Maryland’s Project 6, a program committed to ending mass incarceration by fighting for
the release of those who are wrongfully convicted or serving unjust prison sentences, we boasted
recent successes on behalf of three different clients:
•
Emerson Baxter was released after serving
43 years in prison for a crime committed
when he was 19 years old. He used his time
in prison to transform his life – he finished
his education, maintained his sobriety,
and took advantage of every opportunity
to advance his work skills and personal
wellbeing. Mr. Baxter is an accomplished
tradesman with glowing reviews from his
bosses, and in his free time he writes poetry
and mentors younger inmates.
•
Paul Luckey was released from prison after
serving almost 42 years behind bars for a
murder he was convicted of when he was
18 years old. During his time in prison, Mr.
Luckey had been a model inmate: he earned
his GED, developed a trade in furnituremaking, and remained largely infraction-free.
•
The Maryland Parole Commission also
approved parole for Project 6 client,
Dashan Brooks, who will be released in
May 2024 without a hearing.
In collaboration with Duke University School of Law, Hogan Lovells represents multiple inmates
in applying to the North Carolina Juvenile Sentencing Review Board to have their sentences
commuted or to be granted clemency.
We also support the Cannabis Justice Initiative, a partnership between the National Association of
Criminal Defense Lawyers and the Last Prisoner Project that files compassionate release motions
and clemency petitions on behalf of persons convicted of non-violent marijuana crimes.
Finally, through Maryland Volunteer Lawyers Service and Rising for Justice, we assist individuals
with the sealing or expungement of their criminal records in a bid to improve their housing and
job opportunities.
