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[COURTWATCH BLURB ] Life After Release (LAR) is a formerly incarcerated women-led organization in the DMV area (DC-Maryland-Virginia). We are organizing to build a post-conviction movement where we have the right to challenge our convictions and the system responsible for convicting us in the first place. Our work is grounded in a vision of self-determination for directly-impacted communities and has four main pillars….
LAR is a formerly incarcerated women-led organization in the DMV area (DC-Maryland-Virginia). We are organizing to build a post-conviction movement where we have the right to challenge our convictions and the system responsible for convicting us in the first place. Our work is grounded in a vision of self-determination for directly-impacted communities and has four main pillars:
We bring together formerly incarcerated people and movement lawyers to expose unjust laws, unconstitutional practices and prosecutorial misconduct that are driving thousands of us to prison and a life of collateral consequences. Our goal is both to build a formidable legal self defense to mitigate against the daily harm and a broader movement through educating the public.
Most Black and Brown women are being policed and prosecuted for crimes of poverty while trying to provide for their families. Our goal is to end this criminalization and ultimately abolish the criminal legal system as we know it
We are also empowering our families through participatory defense and legal skills training to defend each other’s families in court. In 2020, we are launching a Liberation & Justice Institute to expand this work and use it as an expanded base-building model.
We run a community court watch program in Prince George’s County, MD to hold prosecutors, judges and the overall system accountable to its purported purpose and reform goals. Our findings have been the basis for publicly released reports on the implementation of bail reform and a prosecutor accountability campaign against the PG County State’s Attorney’s Office. We have 40 trained volunteers driving this program.
We run an ongoing community bail out program that has brought home hundreds of Black mothers. We also work to ensure our mothers have rapid housing after incarceration and access to transportation. We also organize mutual aid efforts and provide access to technology for women after they come home.
Qiana Johnson is the founder of Life After Release, Inc., a formerly incarcerated women-led organization supporting system involved people in the DMV (DC-Maryland-Virginia). She is organizing to build a post-conviction movement challenging the integrity of convictions and the system responsible for convicting us in the first place. She is a former local community organizer with Black Lives Matter DC, a national trainer with Silicon Valley Debug, Participatory Defense, and a proud member of the National Council for Incarcerated and Formerly Incarcerated Women and Girls.
Before her incarceration in 2015, she completed 10 years of Federal Government service. She is a recent graduate of the University of Maryland University College with a Bachelor of Science degree in Legal Studies and a concentration in Public Safety.
After her release from prison on August 21, 2017. Qiana immediately started doing work around prison abolition, prosecutor accountability, and ensuring that formerly incarcerated individuals get what they need to succeed.
Today Qiana’s purpose and passion lie in holding local government officials accountable and demanding progressive changes towards ending mass incarceration. She believes in ensuring public safety without the criminalization of a particular race or social class. She uses her story to empower formerly incarcerated women into becoming productive members of their communities.
Director of Court Watch and Judicial Accountability
Dr. Carmen Johnson in the past had created a niche in educating youth, seniors, returning citizens, and abused women about financial literacy and life skills through a wide variety of grassroots programs designed to uplift, empower, and destroy the barriers to individual and family prosp
Director of Court Watch and Judicial Accountability
Dr. Carmen Johnson in the past had created a niche in educating youth, seniors, returning citizens, and abused women about financial literacy and life skills through a wide variety of grassroots programs designed to uplift, empower, and destroy the barriers to individual and family prosperity. For Carmen, financial responsibility and good credit are at the root of community and family success. She is still committed to changing the culture of low-income streams and credit unworthiness particularly among minority populations in urban neighborhoods often defined by redlining and exorbitant interest rates. She brings a special passion to her new work as a mentor and a financial educator. From the beginning of February 2020 until now, Carmen has been working with Life After Release after her own unexpected wrongful conviction and incarceration. She took a political hit and spent three years in the federal prison camp for women in West Virginia. When the LAR Executive Director asked Carmen to coordinate LAR's court watch program, Carmen accepted. "I don't want anyone to go through what I went through."
“If I can’t help you, I will not harm you.”
Community Outreach Director
Bianca “Boom” Mills is the Community Outreach Director for (LAR) Boom is also a core member of the participatory defense team, which meets every week on Thursday and Saturday to help guide family members on how to free their loved ones.
Boom is a dedicated mother
“If I can’t help you, I will not harm you.”
Community Outreach Director
Bianca “Boom” Mills is the Community Outreach Director for (LAR) Boom is also a core member of the participatory defense team, which meets every week on Thursday and Saturday to help guide family members on how to free their loved ones.
Boom is a dedicated mother of 2 sons and a grandmother of 1 granddaughter. Boom’s son was locked up for a crime he didn't commit. Life After Release members showed Boom how to make social biographies, which greatly impacted her son when he was going to be sentenced. 67 community members and the core team showed up for her son’s sentencing hearing. The public defender had never seen such a demonstration, which ultimately changed the fate of her son’s life.
Boom often says, “Why do I continue to do what I do? I vowed it would never happen to another young man, as long as I can help it. We are continuing to fight this injustice of the system.”
Director of Operations
The Liberation of Black women is Alexiss’ life's
calling. She grew up in N.E. Washington, D.C.,
and attended D.C. Public Schools. Growing up in Washington, DC, she
saw too many young, gifted, black children who
did not make it out of poverty and other
injustices. Through her organization Wake Them
Up LLC, her vision for Bl
Director of Operations
The Liberation of Black women is Alexiss’ life's
calling. She grew up in N.E. Washington, D.C.,
and attended D.C. Public Schools. Growing up in Washington, DC, she
saw too many young, gifted, black children who
did not make it out of poverty and other
injustices. Through her organization Wake Them
Up LLC, her vision for Black liberation is to build
a legacy by impacting black women through healing, organizational, and
developmental coaching. As a leader with an entrepreneurial background,
she has experience developing strategy, mentoring personnel, managing
projects, and building systems while ensuring organizational success through
team building.
“We must take our fight from the streets into the courtroom if we want to abolish prison.”
Qiana Johnson is the founder of Life After Release Inc,
She is also a Co-Conductor of Harriet’s Wildest Dreams. Qiana is organizing to build a post-conviction movement challenging the integrity of convictions and the system responsible for convict
“We must take our fight from the streets into the courtroom if we want to abolish prison.”
Qiana Johnson is the founder of Life After Release Inc,
She is also a Co-Conductor of Harriet’s Wildest Dreams. Qiana is organizing to build a post-conviction movement challenging the integrity of convictions and the system responsible for convicting us in the first place. Qiana is a dedicated mother of 2 sons. She is also a national trainer with Silicon Valley Debug, Participatory Defense, and a proud member of the National Council for Incarcerated and Formerly Incarcerated Women and Girls. Before her incarceration in 2015, she completed 10 years of Federal Government service. Currently, She has completed a Bachelor's in Legal Studies at the University of Maryland University College, with a concentration in Public Safety.
She believes in ensuring public safety without the criminalization of a particular race or social class. She uses her story to empower formerly incarcerated women into becoming productive members of their communities.
Life After Release is part of an ecosystem of movement organizations including Free Black Mamas DMV, Harriet’s Wildest Dreams, Movement for Black Lives, the National Council for Incarcerated and Formerly Incarcerated Women & Girls and The Mass Liberation Project.