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Background photo of the aerial view of Saint Elizabeths Hospital. White overlaying text reads "DC's Only Public Psychiatric Hospital Settles Case with Patients Who Endured Life Threatening Conditions During Water Crisis & COVID-19"

Patients at St. Elizabeths Hospital, who are majority Black, with limited resources, and all of whom have disabilities, settled their suit after enduring life-threatening conditions during a more than 30-day water shut-off and the COVID-19 pandemic.

Read about the settlement and conditions faced by St Elizabeths patients here.

Black and white photo of the shadow of prison cell bars on a floor with white overlaying text that reads "DC Fails to Provide Special Education for Students Incarcerated in the Federal Bureau of Prisons"

Two DC students with disabilities filed complaints challenging DC's failure to provide them with special education while incarcerated, on behalf of themselves and a class of similarly situated students. We are proud to represent these students together with the School Justice Project and Nixon Peabody LLP.

Learn more about this issue here.

Photo of a bus driver smiling at the wheel of a bus and wearing a yellow safety vest. Overlaying white and yellow text reads "Breaking News First Transit, the Washington Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights, and Haynes Boone Announce First Transit’s Initiative to Expand Job Opportunities and Provide Second Chances".

Job applicants with arrest and conviction records often face significant roadblocks to employment. This month, First Transit, the Committee, and Haynes and Boone announced First Transit’s initiative to expand job opportunities and provide second chances.

Read our full press release here.

Background photo of a line of prison cells and white text that reads "Federal Bureau of Prisons Relocates Individuals Imprisoned in the Special Management Unit & Reintegration Unit at USP Thomson"

Reports of abuse at USP Thomson are widespread. With Latham & Watkins, Levy Firestone Muse LLP, and the Uptown People's Law Center, we represent over 100 individuals imprisoned at Thomson. On February 14th, the BOP announced that people imprisoned in the SMU and RU at Thomson will be relocated.

Read more about our investigation and USP Thomson here.

Dear Friend,

Despite two unanimous votes by the DC Council and thousands of pages of explanation, Congress is on the verge of overturning the will of DC residents to revise the criminal code.

Since its adoption in 1901, DC's Criminal Code has never been fully updated. The code includes references to steamboats, outhouses, and mules, while leaving out modern technology and basic definitions like self-defense, manslaughter, and assault.

Beyond the need for updates, DC residents deserve the right to define our own criminal code. This debate underscores our urgent need for statehood now.

Please take time to call on your representatives to defend the Revised Criminal Code and fight for DC statehood today.

Jonathan M. Smith
Executive Director

Join the 2023 Associates Campaign!

Our annual fundraising campaign run by law firm associates is in full swing.

The 2023 Associates Campaign will run through April 30th.

Support your firm's campaign and help change the future now!

Want to get your firm involved? Contact leobardo_palacios@washlaw.org

More News

Client stories from our Workers' Rights Clinic were featured by the DC Bar Foundation in their January newsletter. Thank you to everyone who volunteers with the Clinic and makes this work possible!

We joined more than 90 organizations calling on the DC government to stop the eviction of more than 70 unhoused residents of McPherson Square. We are disappointed in DC's decision to compound the harm faced by people who are unhoused despite the thousands of individual voices calling for change.

PoPville highlighted the important first step toward decriminalizing street vending in DC after years of organizing from groups such as Beloved Community Incubator.

An opinion piece in The DC Line by Colie Levar Long, who is formerly incarcerated, highlighted our report on conditions in federal prisons written with More Than Our Crimes.

Initial police reports about Elijah McClain were misleading, as was shown in the independent investigation led by Jonathan Smith and powered by a pro bono team at Latham & Watkins. These findings and misleading police reports in many other incidences of fatal police violence were detailed by The Washington Post.

Get Involved

The Committee is always looking for co-counsel on important cases. If you want to receive regular emails with available matters, please email jonathan_smith@washlaw.org. Or take a compassionate release or a parole matter or help at our workers’ rights clinic.

Workers' Rights Clinics

The Committee conducts Workers’ Rights Clinics which provide one-on-one consultation with a trained Intake Volunteer who will provide legal advice and brief services, under the supervision of an experienced employment law attorney. These clinics are currently held remotely during the pandemic.

If you are interested, please reach out to sarah_bessell@washlaw.com.

To schedule an intake with our Clinic, call (202) 319-1000 ext. 118. For Spanish please call (202) 319-1000 ext. 123.