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“A federal judge in Austin is hearing a lawsuit this week that aims to force Texas to put air conditioning in all state prisons.
“‘This lawsuit is about bringing temperatures to humane standards in our prisons so that nobody else has to die inside our Texas prisons,’ said Jennifer Toon [Leading with Conviction™ 2024 participant], a formerly incarcerated person who is now project director of the Lioness Justice Impacted Women Alliance.
“A group of advocates is trying to convince the judge the Texas prison system’s lack of air conditioning qualifies as ‘unconstitutional cruel and unusual punishment.’
“‘Live in your car in a parking lot in Walmart in August Texas heat. Live inside there with the windows rolled up. That is the type of heat,’ said Toon.
“On Wednesday, day two of that hearing, the plaintiff’s attorneys pointed to a study showing an average of 14 heat-related deaths a year in un-air-conditioned prisons in Texas, compared to zero in prisons with air conditioning. …
“Lawyers for the Texas Department of Criminal Justice questioned whether air conditioning would actually make much of a difference, noting some of the autopsies referenced by the experts who testified do not list heat as the cause of death.
“‘In these autopsies, we’re seeing that people’s core temperatures were 107 and 109 degrees, and for the state to continue to gaslight us and our families and the public about, oh, these deaths, this increase in deaths has nothing to do with the heat,’ said Toon.”
In our 10th anniversary year, JustLeadershipUSA’s work of educating, elevating, and empowering justice-impacted leaders continues and is growing even stronger!
This is going to be a very special time to look back on the past decade of JLUSA’s important work, the 1,600+ leaders we have helped get to the next level in their work, and even more importantly, we will look ahead to the next 10 years and beyond!
We can’t do this without you. We need your support to help us continue to do this work now and into the future. By making a donation in honor of JLUSA’s 10th anniversary year, you are saying to the amazing leaders in our network who represent the 70+ million Americans who have been directly impacted by the criminal legal system, “I see you, and I support you!”
Please give a one-time $100 gift or set up a recurring $10 monthly donation to celebrate JLUSA’s 10th anniversary year, and together we will build a fair and just U.S. Thank you!
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Since 2014, JustLeadershipUSA has maintained our commitment to ensuring systems-impacted voices are at the forefront of the movement for criminal legal reform, empowering directly impacted leaders in over 45 states with the tools, resources, and connections to transform their work.
Your donation will provide crucial support for our leadership training programs, empowering future generations of leaders and propelling the work of JLUSA and our alumni as we continue to advocate and push reform on issues that matter the most in our communities.
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