Boston Police Funding Out of Step with Major Cities →

BOSTON POLICE FUNDING OVER THE LAST DECADE: EXPLOSIVE GROWTH BUT FEW DOLLARS TO COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT OR ACCOUNTABILITY REPORT FROM LAWYERS FOR CIVIL RIGHTS SHOWS BOSTON IS OUT OF STEP WITH OTHER MAJOR CITIES, NOT RESPONSIVE TO CALLS FOR POLICE REFORM A report released by Lawyers for Civil Rights (LCR) analyzes Boston Police...

Latina Former U.S. Marine Pass Over By Boston Police →

While Claiming to Value Diversity, Boston Police Department Continues to Bypass Qualified Applicants of Color Latina Former U.S. Marine Arbitrarily Passed Over for Hire Lawyers for Civil Rights (LCR) has filed an appeal with the Civil Service Commission on behalf of our client, Gladys Mueller, a Latinx former U.S. Marine, single...

White Supremacist and Insurrectionist Officers →

"Boston must become a testing ground for the ideals of freedom."— Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. Today, on MLK Day 2021, we call on law enforcement agencies to root out officers with white supremacist and insurrectionist tendencies. For our safety -- and the safety of our children, families and communities...

Urging the Justice Department to Convene Prosecutors →

Lawyers for Civil Rights (LCR) urges Attorney General-Designate Merrick Garland, Associate Attorney General-Designate Vanita Gupta, and Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights-Designate Kristen Clarke to set a deliberate and intentional racial equity and racial justice agenda at the Justice Department.  The Justice Department must take immediate action to address the police misconduct...

Civil Rights Implications of U.S. Attorney Search →

Lawyers for Civil Rights urges the Search Committee leading the process of identifying viable candidates to lead the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Massachusetts to take into consideration racial justice, immigrants' rights, and civil rights issues. In an open letter sent to Judge Nancy Gertner, who is leading this important...

Response to the White Supremacist Coup →

Statement in Response to the White Supremacist Coup Lawyers for Civil Rights Calls for Independent Investigation and Charges Against Lynch Mob January 7, 2020 At Lawyers for Civil Rights (LCR), we want everyone to sit with the discomfort of the deadly white supremacist insurrection at the Capitol. We cannot let...

Expanding Our Police Accountability Work →

Lawyers for Civil Rights Deepens and Expands Police Accountability Work Lawyers for Civil Rights (LCR) was founded to marshal the legal resources of the private bar to address ongoing civil rights challenges. More than five decades later, there is still a critical need for legal advocacy coupled with community-based activism to address...

Urging Passage of Police Reform Bill (S.2963) →

Amplify Latinx and Lawyers for Civil Rights are urging Governor Charlie Baker to restore key provisions to the Police Reform Bill (S.2963). Specifically, we are focusing on: Restoring key standards and definitions for use of force to S.2963; and Returning use of force regulatory powers to the Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST)...

Statement on Attorney General Investigation Against Bristol County →

Lawyers for Civil Rights (LCR) applauds the investigation by Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey, which led to today's finding that Bristol County Sheriff Thomas Hodgson's "institutional failures and poor decisions . . . culminated in a calculated—that is, planned and deliberate—use of force against . . . detainees that was...

2020 Annual Report →

We are excited to share our 2020 annual report. The report is available here. Please click here to download the report.

Open Letter to Biden/Harris Transition Team →

Lawyers for Civil Rights (LCR) sent an open letter to the Biden-Harris Transition team identifying urgent legal and policy issues that are currently affecting people of color and immigrants across the country. The letter identifies seven critical areas for immediate executive action, and urges the new Administration to prioritize the...

The Repair Work Begins Now →

STATEMENT FROM NOVEMBER 7, 2020 Lawyers for Civil Rights has played a critical role over the last four years securing major legal relief, including nation-wide injunctions, against executive actions that would harm people of color and immigrants.  We've also stopped the dismantlement of long-standing federal programs designed to protect people of color and...

Statement on Bail Assistance →

Lawyers for Civil Rights (LCR) unequivocally condemns all forms of violence in the strongest terms. We are committed to seeking justice and healing for victims and survivors of crimes.  LCR continues to call for reforms to our bail and criminal system that ensure equal justice for all, not just those who...

Needham Police Accused of Illegally Handcuffing and Profiling Black Father →

Needham Police Department Accused of Illegally Handcuffing and Profiling Black Father  A can of tea and some cough drops. That’s all Marvin Henry was buying when he was—wrongfully—suspected of shoplifting from CVS when he was stopped by multiple Needham police officers, including the Chief of Police, in January 2020 as...

Worcester Police Fail to Protect Black Mother and Her Kids →

"Black cunts!" That's what Ms. Lewis and her 13 year-old daughter were called along with other horrifying expletives. That's what the white gas attendant at Pat's Towing in Worcester yelled as he violently attacked Ms. Lewis' car terrifying Ms. Lewis and her three kids trapped inside. The white gas attendant violently approached Ms. Lewis'...

City Must Act Swiftly to Remedy Injustice to Boston’s George Floyd →

Civil Rights Attorneys Representing Mother Of Terrence Coleman Call On City Leaders To Act Swiftly To Remedy Injustice To “Boston’s George Floyd” In the wake of the George Floyd murder, cities across the country are re-examining their own police killings of Black men and women. Here in Boston, Terrence Coleman, a...

Responding to the Policing Crisis →

Lawyers for Civil Rights has been actively responding to the racial justice and policing crisis pre-COVID and mid-COVID. Here's a snapshot of our life-changing work: We currently represent Hope Coleman, the mother of Terrence Coleman, a young Black man with mental health issues who was killed by Boston police. Hope...

Response to Boston Police Patrolmen’s Association →

Response to Boston Police Patrolmen’s Association’s Letter to Suffolk District Attorney Rachael Rollins We, the undersigned, condemn in the strongest possible terms the letter sent by the Boston Police Patrolmen’s Association (BPPA) to Suffolk District Attorney Rachael Rollins on June 2, 2020. For the BPPA to attack the powerful statements...