Summary:
This 60-minute session arms public defenders with practical tools to help incarcerated clients secure real-world relief, both by preserving future civil rights claims and by using the prison grievance system itself to win remedies without ever entering a courtroom. Using Louisiana as a running case study, an experienced practitioner will show you how to spot conditions-of-confinement violations early, strategically navigate the Prison Litigation Reform Act’s exhaustion and filing hurdles, and leverage the administrative remedy process to obtain meaningful change when pro bono litigation resources are scarce. The program concludes with a live Q&A so you leave ready to integrate these strategies into your practice.
DATE: September 3, 2025, 2:00-3:00 pm ET
CLE Credit: No CLE credit available
COST: FREE (Not a member of NACDL? Learn more or Join Today!)
NOTE: The Webinar link will be provided in a confirmation email after registering.
SPEAKER:
Samantha (Sammy) Pourciau
Samantha (Sammy) Pourciau is a Senior Staff Attorney at the Promise of Justice Initiative (PJI). The Promise of Justice Initiative (PJI) is a New Orleans-based decarceration organization that stands at the forefront of the fight for the dignity, freedom, and autonomy of those targeted and touched by the criminal legal system and mass incarceration. Sammy initially came to work at PJI as an Avodah Jewish Service Corps Member in 2014-2015. She then remained on the team as a paralegal and outreach coordinator for three years before leaving to attend NYU School of Law. During law school, she was a student advocate with the Office of the Appellate Defender through NYU’s Criminal Appellate Defender Clinic and with the Brooklyn Defender Services through NYU’s Criminal Defense and Reentry Clinic, as well as a volunteer with the Parole Preparation Project. Over the summers, she interned at the ACLU’s Criminal Law Reform Project and the Southern Center for Human Rights. She served on the board of the N.Y.U. Review of Law & Social Change as an Executive Editor. She returned to PJI as a NYU Public Interest Law Center fellow in 2021. She received her B.A. from Tulane University in Sociology and Social Policy & Practice.
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