Our Impact
Our Impact
From freeing thousands of Bronx residents to reshaping unjust laws and inspiring national change, our work proves that holistic defense doesn’t just protect people—it transforms lives, systems, and futures.
Holistic Defense in Action
Defending people, not cases
Our groundbreaking model of holistic defense is proven to deliver better results for the people we represent.
A ten-year study demonstrated that holistic defense significantly reduces incarceration rates, sentence length, and pre-trial detention, saving taxpayer dollars, without harming public safety.
$1.15 million
in personal property returned from state seizure.
10,300 people
secured their release from jail or avoided incarceration altogether.
826 people
stayed in their homes, preventing 332 evictions.
2,100 families
with over 4,000 children stayed together or avoided separation
277 people
obtained legal status to keep families and communities together
2,800 people
received social work support
$3.23 million
in public benefits secured, averaging $1,350 per person
Policy Reform
Changing laws and shifting narratives
We use our proximity to the legal systems we work in to challenge and change them, so people are not entangled in them in the first place. We stopped stop-and-frisk, ended cash bail for most charges, and legalized cannabis.
In the last year, we celebrated even more victories:
Protected the Right to Evidence
by co-organizing the fight to Protect Kalief’s Law
Recorded All NYPD Stops
by helping to pass the How Many Stops Act
Ended Anonymous Reporting of Families
by passing the Anti-Harassment in Reporting Act
Sealed Records, Unlocked Opportunity
by helping to pass the Clean Slate Act
Advanced Maternal Health and Dignity
through a new coalition website
Proactive Litigation
Suing the government to protect people’s rights
Often, the injustices we are fighting in court are bigger than any one person’s case or policy. They represent a fundamental and systematic assault on people’s constitutional rights. As a result, we sometimes go on the offense and sue government agencies to bring these injustices to light and end them. Some legal victories we accomplished last year include:
Some legal victories we accomplished last year include:
Won A $125,000 Settlement
for a Bronx woman that exposed ACS racism
Sued to Stop Immigration Abuse
by the GEO Group against an immigrant New Yorker
Brought a Class-Action Lawsuit
against the New York City Department of Correction to stop its illegal mass surveillance of New Yorkers
Redefining Public Defense
Sharing our holistic model with others
Beyond representing people in court and using our expertise to change policies and laws, we also provide in-depth technical assistance to public defender offices across the country and run two law clinics at NYC schools.
Created A Social Work Toolkit
to support public defenders establish holistic social work practices
Hosted Defenders Academy
training dozens of public defender offices from around the country
Building Community Power
Supporting the Bronx to build its own future
We partner with the people we represent and the communities we serve to support the next generation of leaders in the Bronx. Because true change and justice will only come when people take control of their own futures.
Created a Financial Literacy Internship
first-of-its kind in the Bronx
Organized Reentry Clinics
helping over 100 people take control of their futures
Helped Open 9 Legal Cannabis Stores
delivering on the State’s social equity promise