On Tuesday, June 29 The Legal Aid Society hosted a timely conversation to discuss how the Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act (MRTA) will end discriminatory marijuana enforcement in communities of color, expunge conviction records and provide an opportunity for reinvestment in our communities and the futures of young people. This historic victory has set the standard as one of the most progressive models for legalization in the country and is a key part of The Legal Aid Society’s criminal justice reform efforts.

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The event featured the individuals who fought for this pivotal reform possible.

Meet your Moderator and Panelists

Corey Stoughton Attorney-in-Charge Special Litigation Unit

Corey spearheads the efforts of the Special Litigation Unit of the Criminal Defense Practice which addresses systemic legal issues affecting the rights of Legal Aid’s public defense clients, from police misconduct to the rights of incarcerated people, and from bail reform to parole reform. She led the efforts to release hundreds of medically vulnerable people following the severe, uncontrolled outbreak of the deadly COVID-19 pandemic on Riker’s Island.

Emma Goodman Staff Attorney Case Closed Project

Emma is a member of the StartSMART Coalition, which successfully worked to legalize marijuana in 2021, and is a member of the steering committee of Clean Slate NY, a coalition working to bring automatic expungement to all New Yorkers. Through her advocacy efforts, New York passed its first ever automatic expungement law in 2019, and passed two additional laws in 2021, which have led to the automatic expungement of more than 500,000 convictions for loitering and marijuana offenses statewide.

Anne Oredeko Supervising Attorney Racial Justice Unit

Through her connections with organizations and activists within the Movement for Black Lives, Anne has facilitated Know Your Rights workshops, provided legal observing, technical legal advice, and direct representation for activists and organizers. In the summer of 2020 she created the Black Legal Observer Collective (BLOC) with other Black attorneys to provide direct support to Black activist during the uprisings of 2020.

Anthony Posada Supervising Attorney Community Justice Unit

As Supervising Attorney of the Community Justice Unit (CJU), Anthony coordinates efforts to encourage positive interactions between local community members and our city’s justice system. The CJU was founded to provide essential legal services to members of “Cure Violence” Programs, NYC’s approach to curbing gun violence by viewing it as a public safety issue. Anthony leads the CJU in providing Know Your Rights events for immigrants, educating youth groups on the school-to-prison pipeline, advocating against NYPD’s secretive gang database, and more.