Client stories

OWEN

Owen filed his own handwritten motions in jail, fighting his charges himself before Restoring Justice connected him to a better lawyer. “While I was incarcerated, I learned a lot. I taught myself about the law in the law library. I had absolutely no knowledge of my rights, anything. I was amazed at what I didn't know and … how I was being treated so unfairly. That hurt my heart. I realized that by my not having any money at the time, the attorneys that were appointed to me didn’t want to hear my story. I realized every attorney that I had before then they were only interested in one thing. And that was to get my signature on a plea bargain.”

While weighing the options on his case was stressful, he appreciated being heard by the Restoring Justice team and being able to tell his story. “It was great because they actually cared. Someone actually cared.” Owen ended up pleading guilty and receiving a time-served sentence. He is now reunited with his wife and is a truck driver, seeing new places across the country as part of his job - “I’ve been to Denver, Colorado. I've been to Jacksonville, Florida. I've been to August, Georgia. I’ve been to Birmingham, Alabama. You gotta realize, you know at this age, I've never had the chance to travel... I've got a chance to see some of America, and it’s amazing, it broadens your whole perspective about a lot of things… I love it. Freedom!”

Racquel

Racquel is a single mom with a big heart for her seven-year-old son, whom she calls her “little bad booger.” Getting caught up with the criminal legal system disrupted life for her and her family. “When I was in jail for two weeks, I lost my job. I lost everything... Before I had my own place, an apartment. Because of the case, we went to a shelter, and we even slept in my car at one time. Finding housing, doing it on my own was hard because of the cost of rent and because of my background and the pending case.”

Racquel eventually was released with the help of a community bail fund and was relieved to be back to her routine of caring for her son. With the support of her Restoring Justice client advocate, Racquel and her son now live in an apartment. They like to ride bikes together and Racquel sets up movie and game nights with him where they play Connect Four and Monopoly. On Mother’s Day, Racquel received financial assistance and a gift basket from one of Restoring Justice’s community partners. She was grateful to get support on a holiday that honors the role that she’s most proud to have: mother.

Racquel wants to go back to school and put her experience with the criminal legal system in the rearview mirror. “Going to court is something you can't get used to, I don't wish anybody to go to court. I'm anxious to put this behind me.”

ADAM

Adam is a bit of a MacGyver, a guy who likes to work with his hands and has done almost any construction job you can name. He’s also talented at drawing, and both of these skills came in handy in jail. “I drew a lot of pictures for everybody. I was also the maintenance guy, I guess the go-to guy when something broke; I could fix it. Everybody would bring it to me. If their hotpot or their sandal broke, they’d bring it to me.”

“Jail was like a setback for me. I lost a whole year of my life, just going by. I lost my place, I had to start all over. When the prosecutor started talking about me, about something that happened 20 years ago, assuming that I’m still the same person…[my prior attorney] had no way of backing me up because he didn’t know nothing about me. He never visited me, he never talked to me, a phone visit, nothing. He wouldn’t even answer the calls. So it was just so great when [Restoring Justice] was able to take my case. Because in a week’s time, [my Restoring Justice attorney] did what he didn’t do in a whole year.”

After Restoring Justice was able to get Adam released on bail, he quickly went back to doing what he loves: working construction. “I really like to play sports, like basketball and golf is one of my favorites. But I really don’t have a lot of time because I’m always working. I like to watch action movies a lot, I like to barbeque. I watch bits and pieces of movies and then I have to leave [for work].”

JASON

Jason makes music, writes stories and is eager to share his own with the goal of one day becoming a motivational speaker. His prior time in prison changed him from a “sheltered” teenager to a man who thought more about self-preservation. Restoring Justice was able to get his case dismissed, and Jason is now focused on rebuilding his life. “I didn't have no life skills, I'm barely getting life skills now at 26 years old.”

Without a strong connection to his family, Jason is relieved to have Restoring Justice’s support through social services and counseling as he tries to move on: “I feel loved, accepted with all these people on my phone. When I call it’s not just five minutes. It feels good to have people at my disposal to help with my decision. I feel accepted into a family that I always wanted.”

Jason hopes to establish himself as a teacher and a provider. “This is the life that I chose, but I'm making the best of it though, don't get me wrong. I got a good support team, I got my son, he's three years old. I could talk to him when he gets old and teach him to be aware. That's my goal, my motivation.”