Our podcast, Unheard Victims of Incarceration, aims to shed light on the plight endured by families and communities of incarcerated individuals. By having their loved ones physically removed from society, these families and communities suffer economically, socially, and emotionally. We argue that such harms should comprise a damage recognized by the government and in turn, constitute an actionable claim for the families and communities of incarcerated individuals.
The incarceration of loved ones negatively affect their families across multiple domains, from mental health and school performance to lifetime earnings and criminal justice engagement. Despite such destructive effects, it is difficult to acquire tangible compensation for these families’ harms, as they come from communities often neglected by society, lack access to political power, and face state sovereign immunity when trying to bring a claim against the government.
One possibility for communities victimized by mass incarceration to obtain relief through tort law is launching class action lawsuits against the state. Requested damages would include financial reparations to invest in their communities, such as funding for schools and local businesses. This type of litigation is new territory in the law. Yet if we pursue only cases that are easy, radical change can never occur.
America’s current criminal justice system disproportionately imprisons individuals from certain communities and thus affects these communities far more than others. Our cause of action does not purport to fix the criminal justice system, but rather to provide a response and a solution to one of the consequences of a system embedded with ills.
Thank you to our interviewees: David Harris, Katy Naples-Mitchell, and Todd R. Clear.
