Just City

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Just City We believe a smaller, fairer, more humane criminal justice system is possible for Memphis and Tennessee. Learn more 👉 https://www.justcity.org

Just City is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. We work to transform local criminal justice policy and practice to ensure it is fair for all people regardless of wealth, race, or ethnicity. For more information, visit www.justcity.org.

Erick Jones mattered. He is the 70th person to die in the Shelby County Jail since 2018.Around 9:15 this morning, Erick ...
10/06/2026

Erick Jones mattered.

He is the 70th person to die in the Shelby County Jail since 2018.

Around 9:15 this morning, Erick was stabbed by his cellmate. Jail staff reportedly took life-saving measures, but he died while being transported to Regional One by the Memphis Fire Department.

Erick was someone’s whole world. He meant everything to his family.

While we are appreciative that his family was notified in less than six hours, our concern remains the same: the jail simply cannot keep people alive.

Everyone deserves to be safe in government custody, and we will continue to demand change at the Shelby County Jail.

Make them known. Make it stop.

We are thrilled to welcome Kaycee to the team!A Memphis native with a passion for justice, Kaycee joins us as our new De...
09/29/2026

We are thrilled to welcome Kaycee to the team!

A Memphis native with a passion for justice, Kaycee joins us as our new Development and Operations Coordinator. Her background in criminal justice, youth development, and financial crime investigations—paired with a Master’s in Criminal Justice and a Bachelor’s in Psychology—has fueled her commitment to building equitable systems.

From developing youth programs at the City of Memphis Office of Youth Services to advocating for children in the Shelby County Juvenile Court’s CASA program, Kaycee’s work has always centered on empowerment and impact. Most recently, as an AML Investigator, she analyzed financial activity to uncover potential crimes, deepening her insight into how systems can better serve communities.

At Just City, she’ll bring her expertise in program coordination, research, and operations to drive our mission forward. We’re thrilled to have her on board and can’t wait to see the difference she’ll make.

Welcome, Kaycee!

09/29/2026

A Joint Statement from the Shelby County Public Defender and Just City

As public defenders, former public defenders, and community advocates, the Shelby County Public Defender and Just City stand united in calling on Governor Bill Lee to grant clemency to Christa Pike and commute her death sentence to life imprisonment without parole ahead of her scheduled ex*****on on Wednesday, September 30.

Just City was founded by public defenders and supportive community members who shared a foundational belief that our criminal justice system is overly punitive and too often fails to provide justice. The attorneys of the Law Office of the Shelby County Public Defender stand in the gap between the immense power of the state and those accused of breaking the law, and they understand what is at stake within that system every single day.

Christa Pike’s case is a stark and heartbreaking example of how the system can fail—with irreversible, deadly consequences. It strikes at the heart of our shared commitment to justice because the primary system of advocacy for people facing criminal charges—their legal defense—failed Christa when she needed it most.

Just days before her trial was set to begin and after considering all of the evidence and Christa’s circumstances, the prosecution offered her a plea agreement of life imprisonment without parole. That offer demonstrated the State’s own belief that life without parole was an appropriate sentence for the crime. However, Christa’s trial attorneys spent precious little time discussing the offer and the potential consequences of rejecting it. Both trial attorneys have since testified that this failure to counsel her remains their biggest regret.

Now Governor Lee alone has the ability to correct their mistakes and do justice in this case. We urge him to commute her sentence, and we encourage the public to sign the clemency petition at https://www.mercyforchrista.org/petition.

09/24/2026

On this episode of The Permanent Record, our Communications and Advocacy Manager, Laramie Wheeler, sits down with Scott Hechinger of Zealous to talk about those who get erased by the system, and what it takes to make them known.

Scott spent nearly a decade as a Brooklyn public defender and co-founded the Brooklyn Community Bail Fund. Now, through Zealous, he puts storytelling, art, and media in the hands of defenders and directly impacted people.

Zealous built Make Them Known with us, a memorial to everyone who has died in the Shelby County jail since 2018. Laramie and Scott dig into why Memphis, who is doing the erasing, and how to make people feel the presumption of innocence, not just agree with it.

We are forever grateful to Scott and Zealous for handling our community with care.

🎧 Listen now, link in bio.

Celebrating a book that matters! Our incredible friend and author Emily Galvin Almanza has just released Andromeda Diaz ...
09/22/2026

Celebrating a book that matters! Our incredible friend and author Emily Galvin Almanza has just released Andromeda Diaz and the Reasonable Doubt—a must-read for young justice warriors!

This thrilling mystery for kids ages 8–12 follows a fearless fifth grader who learns the power of standing up for herself and her friends. In a world where justice starts with asking the right questions, Andromeda Diaz shows us how to think critically, challenge unfairness, and protect those who need it most.

Because teaching children to defend themselves and their friends isn’t just important—it’s how we build a future rooted in true justice.

Available now!

Beverly was, in the words of those who loved her, a devoted mom, a loyal friend, an aunt to all her nieces and nephews, ...
09/16/2026

Beverly was, in the words of those who loved her, a devoted mom, a loyal friend, an aunt to all her nieces and nephews, and someone who loved animals with her whole heart. Her son is now without his mother.

Beverly was 43 years old when she was found unresponsive in her cell on September 12 at Jail East. She was rushed to Baptist Memorial in critical condition and passed away less than an hour later.

In a system designed to punish, Beverly’s life was treated as disposable. She was not disposable. She was loved. She was needed. She deserved care.

Adequate medical care is a human right — not a privilege that ends at the jail doors. We demand full transparency into Beverly’s care and accountability for every preventable death at Jail East.

Beverly should not have died in custody. 🕊️ No one should die in custody. Her family has not heard anything on how she died under the Sheriff’s Office care, or seen her body.

We will make sure she is known - not as a statistic, but as a reminder of the Memphis we must build. A Memphis that has the courage to care.

“THEY’D LEAVE US IN HERE TO DIE”That’s how people detained at the Shelby County Jail describe the risk of fire — broken ...
09/15/2026

“THEY’D LEAVE US IN HERE TO DIE”

That’s how people detained at the Shelby County Jail describe the risk of fire — broken alarms, no emergency call buttons, doors that need a single set of keys per floor to open.

Just City stands with the brave men who filed a lawsuit yesterday challenging these conditions.

Complaint details:
— Cells over 90°F, described as “two men in a casket”
— People held upright in intake chairs for up to 26 days
— Diesel fuel leaking near housing units while fire alarms sat broken
— Raw sewage and rust-colored water flooding living spaces
— Hundreds confined for months without natural light

Filed by civil rights attorney Stella Yarbrough — who previously helped bring the Busby v. Bonner lawsuit against the county over COVID conditions in the jail — this suit alleges seven counts under the U.S. Constitution and the ADA.

“Everyone deserves to be safe in government custody, and Just City will do everything it can to protect the 3,000+ men, women, and children being detained by Shelby County. We stand with Stella, HSG Law, and every family with a loved one confined in these horrific conditions.” — Laramie Wheeler, Communications and Advocacy Manager

Today is National Grievance Day — a day to remember the 68 lives lost in the Shelby County Jail, people who should still...
08/30/2026

Today is National Grievance Day — a day to remember the 68 lives lost in the Shelby County Jail, people who should still be here with their families. Behind every name on this list is a story cut short, a community left grieving, and a system that failed to protect the people in its care. We say their names because silence lets this cycle continue.

Make Them Known. Make It Stop.

“Don’t do the crime if you can’t do the time” assumes everyone has the same choices to begin with. It doesn’t ask why so...
08/27/2026

“Don’t do the crime if you can’t do the time” assumes everyone has the same choices to begin with. It doesn’t ask why someone shoplifted toilet paper, or missed a court date because they had no ride, or was in crisis with nowhere else to turn.

What if the first question wasn’t “how do we punish you further?, but “what do you need?”

Food insecurity. Housing instability. Untreated mental illness. These aren’t excuses — they’re the reality behind a huge number of arrests. People are surviving, and we’re punishing them for it.

There are better ways to build a safer community than caging people in need. Join the fight for a more fair, more just, more humane system. Link in bio.

08/25/2026

After September 30th, Wellpath will no longer provide health care in the Shelby County correctional facilities. And our biggest fear is that the county replaces them with a vendor that’s just as negligent — same clinical outcomes, same failures, just a different name on the contract.

We don’t need another apathetic, profit-first provider. We can’t take a step sideways. We won’t tolerate the status quo. We need improvement.
Since 2018, 68 people have died in the Shelby County Jail. Nearly all were awaiting trial and presumed innocent. Nearly a third lived with a mental health condition. Their deaths are the most visible consequence of the same careless decision-making we’re at risk of repeating right now.

As Shelby County considers its next jail healthcare provider, we’re demanding:

-Pick the next provider based on quality, not cost
-Divert mental health crises away from the jail
-Give families a voice in the selection

Our new Mayor and Sheriff take office next month. Both have oversight of our jails — and the Sheriff is directly responsible for what happens inside 201 Poplar.

We can’t repeat the mistakes of the past.

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1000 S Cooper St
Memphis, TN
38104

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