The New Orleans Chapter of the Federal Bar Association and its Justice Camp program invite you to attend its special programming.
1 CLE Credit. Session available in person or via Zoom. Lunch provided to those attending in person.
In a Q&A format, Sophie Cull, as moderator, and Calvin Duncan will candidly recount his journey within Louisiana's legal system as an impoverished defendant during the 1980s. He will shed light on the daunting challenges he encountered while attempting to obtain his records, navigate the appeals process, and fight his case without external legal assistance. Calvin will explore how evolving laws throughout his incarceration placed greater barriers for prisoners, particularly those from impoverished backgrounds, to access the justice system. Calvin will touch on the distinctive dynamics of attorney-client relationships and illuminate the crucial role played by jailhouse lawyers within the legal landscape. He will describe how he and fellow prisoners at Angola's prison law library managed to educate themselves on the law and build friendships that sustained them in the face of impossible odds.
Sophie Cull: Sophie Cull is a criminal justice reform advocate who has published on the death penalty, life sentences, and prosecutorial misconduct. As a cofounder of The Visiting Room Project, she helped create the world’s largest collection of filmed interviews with people serving life without parole. Originally from Australia, she began her career in New Orleans, assisting legal organizations defending individuals on Louisiana’s death row.
Calvin Duncan: Calvin Duncan is the founder and director of the Light of Justice program, which is focused on improving legal access for incarcerated individuals. Falsely accused of murder at the age of nineteen, he endured a life sentence without the possibility of parole in Louisiana prisons for more than twenty-eight years. While incarcerated, he became a jailhouse lawyer, helping hundreds of his peers challenge wrongful convictions and unjust sentences. His efforts have contributed to landmark U.S. Supreme Court decisions, including Smith v. Cain (2012) and Ramos v. Louisiana (2020). Duncan holds a JD from Lewis & Clark Law School and resides in New Orleans, where he continues his advocacy on behalf of those still behind bars.
Link to Register :
Calvin and Sophie are also publishing a book to share his story. The information about the book is below.
The Jailhouse Lawyer by Calvin Duncan and Sophie Cull is, in the words of John Grisham, an “incredible” story—“so heartwarming and hopeful that it will stay with you for a long time.”
Calvin Duncan was nineteen when he was incarcerated for a 1981 New Orleans murder he didn’t commit. Abandoned with no resources, an incompetent defense system, and little education, Duncan was sentenced to spend the rest of his life in jail. Duncan took matters into his own hands when he filed his first motion from prison: “Motion for a Law Book.” This would be the first step in launching his self-taught, successful legal career. It would be decades before Duncan would get out of prison; yet, instead of succumbing to despair, he helped hundreds of his peers navigate their cases and taught a class in Angola, championing those around him to fight for their own justice under the law. The Jailhouse Lawyer, written with criminal justice reform advocate Sophie Cull, is an intimate look inside the triumph and tragedy of Calvin Duncan and the road he created to freedom.
For every three pre-orders made by July 24, Penguin Random House will donate a softcover prison edition of The Jailhouse Lawyer to someone who is incarcerated. You can support this effort and order your copy at a discounted rate here:
https://promo.porchlightbooks.com/products/jailhouse-lawyer-1