Theory of Change at Work

Salvation and Social Justice Accomplishments

SENTENCING

SandSJ led the legislative campaign which now requires New Jersey to have Racial Impact Statements developed for proposed criminal justice legislation.

PRISONS

SandSJ in partnership with the New Jersey Institute for Social Justice (NJISJ) advocated and won Restored Voting Rights to 83,000 formerly incarcerated.

SandSJ led the faith leader driven campaign to restrict solitary confinement. This victory was one by allowing the voices of those who had experienced this United Nations defined practice of torture.

New Jersey had the highest prison death rate in the country at the start of the pandemic. Our advocacy led to a law which has released of over 8000 people from prison through the pandemic, a 40% reduction in the state’s prisons. The largest such reduction in the nation. This victory was sparked by the impassioned pleas of family members and incarcerated people crying for help. We conducted a Black church style funeral and a 400-car funeral procession that ignited a movement for compassion.

POLICE

Our advocacy and hearings held in Black churches throughout the state to hear from people who experienced police violence led to the Independent Prosecutors Law and Directives and the Use of Force Directive. as well as the establishment of a Police Licensure Program.The Police Licensure Program empowers the Police Training Commission to not only revoke the licenses of officers who have engaged in specified acts of misconduct but also prohibits the hiring of decertified officers by any other law enforcement agency or law enforcement adjacent profession in the state. Additionally, it requires that decertified officers be reported to the National Decertification Index (NDI) to prevent the hiring of bad police in other agencies throughout the nation.

DRUG POLICY

Our advocacy "on cannabis" shut the state legislature down 4 times until they included equity in licensing that a social equity excise tax and 70% of the sales tax be invested back into communities most impacted by prohibition.

We protested until a Black man was put on the cannabis commission.

YOUTH

SandSJ in partnership with the NJISJ advocated and won the closure announcement of Two NJ Youth Prisons.

Along with our partners the NJISJ we led the community visioning, legislative drafting and advocating that led to an 8.4 Million Appropriation for Restorative Justice Hubs.

GUN VIOLENCE

SandSJ was awarded $500,000 from the Attorney General to do violence interruption in Trenton "that led to the creation of the Trenton Restorative Street Team.

HEALTH EQUITY

SandSJ alongside several of our partners were successful in getting the “Cover All Kids” legislation passed, which provided universal health care coverage to all children in New Jersey and work to address the disparate lack of coverage among Black children in the state.

SandSj's advocacy led to the 2M awarded for the birthing center in Trenton.