Our Work

The Women's Prison Project’s work includes:

• Individual representation from pre-trial to post-conviction, parole, and clemency proceedings 
• Training and education for criminal system professionals and the women tasked with assisting other incarcerated women with legal claims 
• Consultation to defense attorneys representing survivors charged with or convicted of crimes relating to their abuse 
• Policy work to improve legal protections for victims who are defendants in the criminal justice system 
• Production of training materials and practice manuals for prosecutors and defense attorneys 

“Too many incarcerated women continue to serve long or life sentences for killing abusive partners, often decades ago and long before our societal understandings of domestic violence evolved into what they are today. Their decades of incarceration have rendered them invisible – now it’s both necessary and urgent that we bring their stories back into the public consciousness.” Becki Kondkar, Women's Prison Project Co-Director

"There are so many women in Louisiana sentenced to die in prison for defending themselves. We have a lot to do, but we have a lot of hope. Hope because the time is ripe for reform; hope because there is a growing awareness about intimate partner violence; and hope we get from these women who, despite everything, haven’t given up." Katherine Mattes, Women's Prison Project Co-Director