The Second Look Lobby Day will begin at 8 a.m. on Tuesday, January 16, 2024 at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Richmond and end at the Virginia State Capitol, where impacted people will meet with lawmakers. 

"Potentially hundreds of people who’ve worked for years to earn their release will finally get it, and we’re thrilled that Mr. Puryear is home with his family," said Vishal Agraharkar, ACLU-VA Senior Supervising Attorney.

“Virginia governors have historically restored Virginians’ voting rights – not removed them," said ACLU-VA Executive Director Mary Bauer. “No administration should get to pick and choose who gets to vote, and that includes this one." 

The Supreme Court of Virginia affirmed the VADOC's interpretation of budget language that restricted eligibility for expanded earned sentence credits. Our cases on inchoate offenses remain pending.

Today the ACLU of Virginia filed two new cases challenging the Virginia Department of Corrections’ (VADOC) refusal to award expanded sentence credits to people with certain convictions, unlawfully extending their incarceration. 

The Virginia Department of Elections released its Annual List Maintenance Report last week detailing the cancellation of the voting rights of 17,368 Virginians convicted of a new felony after their voting rights had been restored.

"Neither the public, the media, nor even elected officials really know what goes on behind prison walls. That’s why lawmakers’ first step towards creating meaningful oversight of VADOC is so significant," said ACLU of Virginia Policy and Advocacy Strategist Shawn Weneta.

Today the Supreme Court of Virginia issued a ruling in Prease v. Clarke, finding that the Virginia Department of Corrections (VDOC) unlawfully extended Mr. Prease’s incarceration by withholding earned sentence credits that he earned while in prison.

Protect Democracy, ACLU of Virginia, and WilmerHale filed a first-of-its-kind lawsuit in federal court challenging the Virginia Constitution’s felony disenfranchisement. The case claims that Virginia is in violation of the 150-year-old federal law that established the terms of Virginia’s readmission