Hello there!

We are fundraising to attend the Convening for Felony Murder Reform. We just learned about this amazing convening and did not allocate sufficient travel funds for it. We’d love it if y’all could support us in getting there!

Why is this convening relevant?

This convening is gathering folks working to end and/or reform Felony Murder Law.

What is Felony Murder Law?

Felony Murder Law is an archaic law that says anyone in the presence of a murder can be charged with the murder under Felony Murder Law. How that has looked for some of our directly impacted members is a 14-year-old being held for 48 hours without a parent, guardian or lawyer present and threatened with Capital Punishment if he did not sign a plea deal. This youth was charged under the Felony Murder Law for being in the presence of a murder committed by Phoenix Police of Jacob Harris, who was 19 years old at the time. You can learn about this case here: https://theappeal.org/new-hope-for-phoenix-trio-imprisoned-for-murder-committed-by-police/

You can learn more about the folks impacted by Felony Murder Law here: https://fmeproject.org/about/what-is-felony-murder/

Why are we going?

We are a collection of different organizations and leaders who are supporting the folks directly impacted by the Felony Murder Law, looking to change the abhorrent impact this law has on folks and their families.

As you can see on this map, only 4 States DO NOT have the law. Not only that, data in most States are lacking at best. We want to attend this conference to see how we can build collective and National power with aligned partners to shift the impact of this horrible law.

What we need:

We are fundraising to take 4-5 folks. This includes covering air travel, transportation in the city, food, and hotel stay. This total comes to: $3,500

Lodging:$1400🏠

Flights: $375 per person✈️

Car Rental: $195🚐

Food: $1200🍕

Meet the folks who are going!

Kat is a former BLM Phx Metro member turned employee. Before taking a paid role with the organization, they engaged in organizing at ASU for better treatment of BIPOC Students, and in Phoenix around housing and rent control. Like most folks, Kat has learned of Felony Murder Law through work assisting our Justice Families and wants to increase their knowledge, impact, and understanding of this law to better support families as they continue organizing.
Elsa is a family advocate lead at BLM Phx Metro who works with families that have had a youth incarcerated because of felony murder. Our youth and families demand an end, and she is looking for solutions to meet this demand.
Erika works directly with women, femmes, and girls who are incarcerated, unsupported, and directly impacted by this law. As she continues advocating for the young women and girls incarcerated, she wants to attend this conference to build connections with other national groups working on the intersections of incarceration, mentorship, and advocacy.
Hanan is the development lead at BLM Phx Metro and will be attending to better understand the landscape of work towards ending Felony Murder, funding supporting organizations doing this work(if any), and providing logistical support to the team so they can focus on connection.

We really need your support in this endeavor, as we are seeing more youth incarcerated under this law, with almost no accountability towards prosecutors' use, let alone public knowledge of this law. We appreciate any donation or share of this ask. Thank you!

In Love and Solidarity,

BLM Phoenix Metro Team

Building Power and Ending Felony Murder Law

Help us get to Chicago to connect with other folks trying to end Felony Murder Law