EPIC Annual Conference

10/03/2020

Today's the big day! The conference starts at 9:30 am. "See" you then!

10/02/2020

We are one day away from EPIC's annual conference! You do not want to miss this tomorrow! Tell a friend, colleague, stranger, or anyone that you think would be interested. We look forward to experiencing this conference with you tomorrow! If you registered online and have not received the webinar link, please let us know.

As a reminder, here is the EPIC Grant Conference Requirement:
a. Applicants must certify their attendance at the most recent EPIC Conference (“A Hundred Years and Counting: The Ongoing Fight for Voting Rights”) held on October 3, 2020.
b. If an applicant did not attend the EPIC Conference, they must certify their attendance at a Qualifying Public Interest Conference. The term “Qualifying Public Interest Conference” means any professional, academic or legal conference that is (i) related to issues in public interest and (ii) at least four hours in length. The term “Qualifying Public Interest Conference” does not include meet-and-greets or brunches/luncheons. If the applicant attends a Qualifying Public Interest Conference, they must include a brief description of the conference.

09/30/2020

It's not too late to register for this year's EPIC Conference!

09/26/2020

This year’s Emory Law Public Interest Committee (EPIC) conference will be taking place virtually next Saturday, October 3 from 9:30 am- 1:30 pm! We are excited for a day of engaging discussions, panels, and presentations surrounding this year’s topic: The Ongoing Fight for Voting Rights.
The conference will feature speakers such as Sean J. Young (ACLU Georgia), Pamela S. Karlan (Stanford Law School), Portia Allen-Kyle (Voting Rights Lab), Jonathan Diaz (Campaign Legal Center), Umer Rupani (Georgia Muslim Voter Project), Charles Stephens (The Counter Narrative Project), Munir Meghjani (Servant Leader), Pedro Hernandez (FairVote), and Drew Penrose (FairVote).
Please join us for a conversation on why the fight for voting rights isn’t over.
*Georgia CLE Credit Available
RSVP: bit.ly/2020EPICConference

Join EPIC in a day of engaging discussions, panels, and presentations regarding wrongful convictions

09/26/2020

This year’s Emory Law Public Interest Committee (EPIC) conference will be taking place virtually next Saturday, October 3 from 9:30 am- 1:30 pm! We are excited for a day of engaging discussions, panels, and presentations surrounding this year’s topic: The Ongoing Fight for Voting Rights.
The conference will feature speakers such as Sean J. Young (ACLU Georgia), Pamela S. Karlan (Stanford Law School), Portia Allen-Kyle (Voting Rights Lab), Jonathan Diaz (Campaign Legal Center), Umer Rupani (Georgia Muslim Voter Project), Charles Stephens (The Counter Narrative Project), Munir Meghjani (Servant Leader), Pedro Hernandez (FairVote), and Drew Penrose (FairVote).
Please join us for a conversation on why the fight for voting rights isn’t over.
*Georgia CLE Credit Available
RSVP: bit.ly/2020EPICConference

10/05/2019

“The people who have been to school think they know how to fix school, but the problems with education are so complex. No matter what type of law you practice, you will have an impact on education. If you help a family with housing, or healthcare, or improve the environment, it all trickles down to our children.” -Kim Bearden, Ron Clark Academy

10/03/2019

This year’s Emory Law Public Interest Committee (EPIC’s) conference is taking place this Saturday, October 5, at Emory Law! We are excited for a day of engaging discussions, panels, and presentations surrounding this year’s topic: Inequity and Civil Rights in Secondary Education.

The conference will feature speakers such as Kim Bearden (The Ron Clark Academy), April England-Albright (U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights), Kandis Wood Jackson and Jason Esteves (Atlanta Board of Education), Matt Westmoreland and Antonio Brown (Atlanta City Council), Michelle Gopman (Attorney, Juvenile Division of the DeKalb County Public Defender), and Aarti Sharma (Georgia Charter Schools Association).

All members of the greater metro-Atlanta community are welcome to attend free of charge. Please RSVP for more information regarding this event:
https://emorylaw.wufoo.com/forms/inequity-and-civil-rights-in-secondary-education/

Registration for attendees begins at 9:30. CLE Credit is available. Lunch will be provided with gluten-free and vegetarian options available.

Reception immediately following.

Facebook event available:
https://www.facebook.com/events/505462066666196/

10/06/2018

Our last panel was incredible! See below for our quote highlights and additional information:

Some feel good quotes:
“You can’t be thankful enough. You appreciate life because your life had been take away.” (Clarence Harrison on how he felt after release)

“If you’re looking for something to do where you can really make a difference, it doesn’t get much better than this.” (Jason Costa on how he felt when Clarence Harrison was released)

“We never take no for an answer... we try not to give up.” (Clare Gilbert on what GIP does to overcome hurdles to find the exculpatory evidence)

“A miscarriage of justice cannot be corrected until it is rectified... until we can rectify this, it will still be an issue... the system is still broken.” (Clarence Harrison)

Helpful links:
Georgia Innocence Project (GIP):
https://www.georgiainnocenceproject.org/

Clarence Harrison’s Story:
https://www.innocenceproject.org/cases/clarence-harrison/

DNA Denial (WSB-TV):
http://projects.wsb.com.s3-website-us-east-1.amazonaws.com/dna-denial/

Making a Murderer:
https://www.netflix.com/title/80000770

Picture: Jason Costa (99C, 06L) and Clarence Harrison on the Spring 2005 issue of Emory Magazine. Costa was a student intern at GIP when he worked on Harrison’s case. He was hired by GIP after graduating in May 2006.

10/06/2018

Hey all! We heard some extremely insightful comments from our panel on mistake in wrongful convictions!

Here’s two great quotes:
“It’s a misconception that law is somehow equal... that there is equal justice across the board.” (Cyntoria Johnson, on the misconceptions surrounding convictions)

“The thing you can’t lose sight of is the human victim here... they’ve been in prison for decades sometimes... it is an experience none of us, unless wrongfully convicted, will never understand the intensity of.” (Dean Jessica Gabel Cino, on the impact of mistake/wrongful convictions on the accused)

Here’s how to find more information on some of the topics mentioned:
Show Up Identifications:
https://californiainnocenceproject.org/issues-we-face/eyewitness-identification/

John White’s Story:
https://www.innocenceproject.org/cases/john-jerome-white/

Houston Crime Lab Scandal:
https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/Scores-of-cases-affected-after-HPD-Crime-Lab-5562835.php

Boston Crime Lab Scandal:
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/epic-drug-lab-scandal-results-more-20-000-convictions-dropped-n747891

Chicago False Confession Scandal:
http://www.abajournal.com/magazine/article/chicago_police_false_confessions

The Disparity in DNA Statistics:
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/21/opinion/the-dangers-of-dna-testing.html

Larry Krasner, the new Philadelphia DA who ran on a platform of lowering incarceration:
https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/4415817-Philadelphia-DA-Larry-Krasner-s-Revolutionary-Memo.html

https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/how-prosecutors-can-help-end-mass-incarceration-larry-krasner-podcast-ncna890126

And remember, “you have a power to be the voice for the voiceless.” (Dean Jessica Grabel Cino)