Shaping Justice Conference Explores ‘(De)Criminalizing Poverty’

Students, alumni and public interest lawyers discussed ways to combat the cyclical and symbiotic nature of poverty and the criminal justice system, at the eighth annual Shaping Justice conference Feb. 2 at the University of Virginia School of Law.

Alec Karakatsanis, founder of Civil Rights Corps, delivered the keynote address.

Before founding Civil Rights Corps, Karakatsanis was a civil rights lawyer, public defender and co-founder of the nonprofit Equal Justice Under Law. He has been a leader in designing new legal, advocacy and narrative strategies for challenging pretrial detention, cash bail and other practices in the criminal justice system.

Two UVA Law alumni were honored for their work in public service at the conference, titled “(De)Criminalizing Poverty.”

Jonathan Lowy ’88 received the Shaping Justice Award for Extraordinary Achievement and Emily Ponder Williams ’14 received the Shaping Justice Rising Star Award. Lowy, who was unable to attend, founded the Global Action on Gun Violence in Washington, D.C., and serves as president of the organization. Williams is the managing attorney of the Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem’s civil defense practice.

Panels featuring advocates, scholars and the mayor of Richmond discussed the right to housing, and victories and creative solutions in the fight against the criminalization of poverty.

The conference was sponsored by UVA Law’s Program in Law and Public Service.