Cambodian refugee and PCJP client Tith Ton, 40, spent more than two decades in prison for killing a rival gang member. In December he was granted parole— approved by Gov....
Read More
Previous
Next
“Law school classes taught me to think like an attorney, but PCJP made me an attorney.”
— Alex Hurd, JD 2016
For nearly 40 years, the Post-Conviction Justice Project (PCJP) at the USC Gould School of Law has been tirelessly advocating for the incarcerated.
PCJP fights for second chances — through parole representation, parole-readiness workshops in prisons, courtroom representation and legislative advocacy. A clinical program directed by professors Heidi Rummel and Michael Brennan with certified law student interns, PCJP works with men and women — many sentenced to life-terms for crimes committed in their youth over 20 or 30 years ago. Since 2008, PCJP has co-sponsored or written nearly every juvenile justice bill in California, impacting tens of thousands of lives.
“We believe in the power of hope.”
Heidi Rummel
Co-Director
0
Clients Assisted
0
Life-Term Clients Released
0
Law Students and Alumni
0
Workshops in 20 Prisons
The Latest News
"Like threading a needle" — PCJP director talks parole in The New York Times Magazine
Heidi Rummel, director of the Post-Conviction Justice Project, discussed California’s parole process in The New York Times Magazine Jan. 1 article “Can You Talk Your Way Out of a Life...
Read More
KCRW: Former lifers welcome home the newly released
KCRW’s podcast Greater L.A. hosted PCJP client Louis Pham in a story about how former lifers are welcomed back into the community. When a lifer steps out of prison after...
Read More
KCRW: The transformation of the California prison system
PCJP Director Heidi Rummel joined KCRW Host Steve Chiotakis on the Greater L.A. podcast to discuss how the California prison...
Read More
For Maximum Security Inmates, USC’s Post-Conviction Justice Project Sparks Hope
The inmates at the maximum-security Pelican Bay State Prison in Northern California sat in a circle in the enormous gym,...
Read More
“You Guys Are Coming Home”
Six inmates sat in the visiting room of California’s Corcoran State Prison, and each one held a piece of paper....
Read More