More than 250 attorneys and others volunteered to review cases and secured the freedom of more than 15 individuals, seven of whom had been serving life sentences. The event celebrated the lives returned to freedom and the incredible advocacy of these volunteers. The attorneys shared the impact the work had on them as well as on their clients.
The D.C. Compassionate Release Project was part of NACDL’s broader Return to Freedom Project (R2F)—a initiative to restore hope and opportunity for individuals serving excessive or outdated sentences. Launched in 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the D.C. project was a collaborative emergency effort led by the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) and partner organizations to address the urgent health risks faced by incarcerated individuals sentenced under the D.C. Code. More than 250 volunteer attorneys were mobilized to assist eligible individuals in seeking sentence reductions or release under newly expanded compassionate release laws. Their work helped secure the freedom of multiple people, including several who had been serving life sentences, reuniting them with their families and communities.
The Return to Freedom Project embodies NACDL’s long-standing commitment to justice reform and second chances. Through partnerships and advocacy, R2F has recruited thousands of volunteers, placed more than a thousand cases with pro bono counsel, and helped regain freedom for hundreds of people nationwide.
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Supported by NFCJ
The NACDL Foundation for Criminal Justice preserves and promotes the core values of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers and the American criminal justice system.
Support Us NowThis vital work was made possible with the support of the NACDL Foundation for Criminal Justice (NFCJ), whose backing ensured that the D.C. Compassionate Release Project—and others like it—could protect human dignity and promote meaningful relief for those most impacted by America’s harsh sentencing policies.
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2025 Year-End Ethics Grab
Earn your ethics credits for 2025 by learning from some of the best criminal defense attorneys in the country! This comprehensive year-end ethics program brings together three of NACDL’s most practical and timely presentations—helping defense lawyers meet their ethics credit requirements while sharpening their understanding of the professional challenges facing today’s practice. This special compilation includes the highest-rated legal ethics presentations delivered at NACDL conferences in 2025!
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Using AI for Trial Preparation: Managing Overwhelming Caseloads
This 1-hour program shows defense lawyers how to use AI to tame heavy caseloads while staying ethical. Learn to auto-summarize discovery into timelines, relationship maps, and contradiction charts; draft and refine cross-exams; analyze juror questionnaires; and test case theories. Set up workflows and agents to monitor law, media, and social posts. Build simple custom trial tools. Leverage sentencing data for mitigation. Includes confidentiality, verification, and disclosure best practices to boost accuracy and save hours weekly.
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Pozner's Red Book on Cross: Lessons in Advanced Cross-Examination
This compact handbook brings together over 20 of Larry Pozner’s most powerful cross-examination articles, covering core principles and advanced strategies for witness control, impeachment, chaptering, and framing reasonable doubt. Packed with scripting examples, real-world scenarios, and tactical insight, it shows how to press or pivot with purpose, drop weak points, and keep cross disciplined. Whether dismantling an officer’s account, challenging an eyewitness, or exposing investigative gaps, Pozner’s field manual delivers courtroom-ready tools to win.
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Exposing Lies and False Testimony in Criminal Trials
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Objections That Stick! How to Exclude, Preserve, and Persuade
If you’re not objecting, you might be conceding—learn how to stop giving ground.
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Combating the "Rape Myth" Expert: Excluding & Diffusing Expert Testimony
When the prosecution uses a “rape myth” expert to sway the jury, do you know how to stop them—and turn their science against them?
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Pattern Cross-Examination for Digital Forensic Experts
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Using Chat GPT in Criminal Cases - Writing Better Prompts
Want a motion written in plain language but grounded in Tennessee case law? Need a summary of Fourth Amendment jurisprudence with primary and secondary citations? This is where you learn how to get that—on demand, and with far less editing. This training is designed specifically for attorneys—busy professionals who need fast, accurate, and case-relevant AI support. Whether you’re drafting motions, brainstorming legal strategy, summarizing complex case law, or preparing cross-examinations, the quality of your AI output comes down to one thing: how you ask for it.
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Alcohol, Blackouts and Consent in Sex Cases
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Overcoming the Presumption of Guilt and Defining Reasonable Doubt
Reasonable Doubt, what is it?
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