No human is disposable.

We aim to center the voices of those most harmed by Illinois’ unjust criminal legal policies by engaging system-impacted people in our policy work. Thanks to the tenacious advocacy of our policy team, Illinois recently became the 26th state to abolish life without parole sentences for children and young adults! Our work now seeks to further undo the Illinois laws that result in extreme sentences, especially for young people.

In addition to our advocacy work, we engage with communities through a variety of support groups, including Communities and Relatives of Illinois Incarcerated Citizens (CRIIC) and our Returning Citizens Network (RCN). Both of these groups were founded and continue to be run by system-impacted people, and provide spaces of support and resilience for community members and returning citizens.

Restore Justice conducts research on the laws that impact sentencing practices in Illinois. We use that research to publish a commentary series which provides straightforward explanations of some of the state’s unique criminal legal policies and practices, and how these policies have converged to deprive children and young adults of their liberty, their chance for rehabilitation, and their possibility of release.

We are focused on retroactively abolishing sentences of life without the possibility of parole for children and young adults. We are also working to make both firearm enhancements and mandatory minimums for young people discretionary, limit the scope of Illinois’ law of accountability, roll back “truth-in-sentencing” laws, restrict the use of solitary confinement, and create resentencing opportunities for everyone incarcerated in Illinois state prisons.