Our clients, families of gun violence victims, file an appeal brief with the PA Supreme Court, taking on firearm preemption laws |
A memorial for gun violence victims in Philadelphia
Gun violence in Philadelphia is both a public health and civil rights crisis. Gun violence kills 1,544 people a year in Pennsylvania—a rate of 11.7 per 100,000 that surpasses most neighboring states. Black Pennsylvanians are 19 times more likely to die by gun homicide than white Pennsylvanians, and in Philadelphia, Black residents are five times more likely to be shot than their white neighbors are.
But for decades, the state legislature has maintained firearm preemption laws which block cities like Philadelphia from passing and enforcing most local gun safety measures--all while refusing to consider action statewide. In October 2020, we sued to change that.
On September 30, our clients—residents of Philadelphia and Allegheny County who have lost family members to gun violence, and CeaseFirePA—and the City of Philadelphia filed their brief in their appeal to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. We're asking the Pennsylvania Supreme Court to reverse the Commonwealth Court’s dismissal of the case in a plurality decision on May 27, 2022, and to send the case back to the lower court for trial. Read our brief here.
“Every single day, Pennsylvanians whose families and neighbors face an onslaught of gun violence are demanding action from every level of government,” said Mimi McKenzie, Legal Director for the Public Interest Law Center. “It is absolutely unconscionable for legislative leaders in Harrisburg to step between them and their local leaders and decree that an entire category of solutions—most regulations on guns—are absolutely off the table. Our clients deserve their day in court to challenge this untenable legal status quo.”
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Join us for our 2022 annual celebration,
Persevering for Justice!
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We are so excited to see you at our 2022 annual celebration! Join us at Vie on Broad Street in Philadelphia as we celebrate those who never give up in the fight for civil, social and economic rights at Persevering for Justice!
When: Thursday, October 27, 2022, 6-9 PM
Where: Vie, 600 North Broad Street, Philadelphia PA
Individual tickets are $150; tickets for non-profit colleagues, teachers and students are $75. Sponsorships are also available--contact Stephanie Davis for more information at sdavis@pubintlaw.org or 267-546-1303.
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Honoring those who never give up in the fight for civil, social and economic rights |
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Michael Churchill
This year, we will present our Thaddeus Stevens Award to those who never give up in the fight for civil and social rights. We'll recognize our own Michael Churchill, whose service and leadership has been foundational since he joined the Law Center as co-director in 1976, and who for more than 50 years dedicated his career to advancing civil and social rights. Mr. Churchill has helped win major victories in Philadelphia and Pennsylvania against housing segregation, police misconduct, employment discrimination, and more. Most recently, he helped lead our litigation team in our school funding trial challenging Pennsylvania’s inadequate, inequitable, and unconstitutional system for funding public schools.
We'll also honor our brave clients in our school funding trial, superintendents from six Pennsylvania school districts, and our tireless pro bono co-counsel, O'Melveny and Meyers. Read more about this year's honorees here!
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Our celebration features exciting and thought-provoking entertainment from local Philadelphia artists: the West Powelton Drummers and Spiral Q, known for their giant puppets and creative political action. Learn more about this year's artists here! |
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New report with Prison Policy Initiative: The geography of mass incarceration in Pennsylvania |
The report shows all corners of Pennsylvania are harmed by mass incarceration. However, the harms aren’t felt equally. In Philadelphia, residents of Nicetown are more than fifty times as likely to be incarcerated as residents of Center City-West. From Jefferson County to North Philadelphia, this report puts data behind what we already know: the communities that have faced the steepest disinvestment face the steepest rates of incarceration.
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Law Center in the News: Standing with parents for quality public education in Chester |
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Nafis Nichols, the new receiver for the district, ruled out charter-school conversion under his leadership when describing his plans while at the helm of the district.
We will continue to stand with parents in Chester to make sure decisions about the district's future are made transparently and with the best interest of their children's education in mind. We're encouraged that a rushed experiment in privatization was rejected.
“The parents of Chester Upland played a key role in rejecting that ill-conceived effort and rush to judgment. We are continuing to monitor the situation, participate in hearings, and we seek to ensure greater parent input in a transparent financial recovery process that centers the academic needs of the district school children,” Maura McInerney, Legal Director at Education Law Center-PA, our partner in this effort, told WHYY.
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