Here's the video of our Independents for City Council Forum.

Equity and Progress in Charlottesville (E.P.I.C.) is pleased to endorse

JEFF FOGEL for the office of Commonwealth Attorney

and we urge all progressives to vote for him in the Democratic primary on June 13.

We believe that Jeff’s extensive experience as a trial lawyer, life-long commitment to social justice, and his plan of action qualify him as the only candidate who can reliably reform our local criminal justice system, eliminating the obvious racial disparities in local prosecution, challenging the war on drugs and combating the long standing practice of mass incarceration, which are so harmful to families and so costly to our community.

JEFF FOGEL is the agent of change that Charlottesville needs in order to raise the justice in our criminal justice system to a level of which we can be proud: justice truly for all!

http://fogelforcca.us/

https://www.facebook.com/JeffFogelforCCA/

EPiC endorses BOB FENWICK in the City Council Primary

EPiC (Equity and Progress in Charlottesville) is pleased to announce that we endorse Bob Fenwick for City Council in the upcoming June 13 Democratic Party primary. Of the three candidates in the Democratic primary, we believe that Bob Fenwick best understands the need to promote Economic Opportunity and Quality of Life, Social and Racial Equity, and Open Accountable Government in Charlottesville--the three major issues stated in the EPiC platform. Bob has a proven track record of supporting these issues by promoting efforts to raise the minimum wage, supporting human rights initiatives, advocating for public housing residents, promoting environmental causes, opposing gentrification, championing open government, hiring re-entering offenders, and showing up at an amazing number of meetings and events throughout the city. We urge everyone to vote in the June 13 Democratic Party Primary.

Commonwealth's Attorney Questions:

If you would, please let us know how you have addressed these issues in your past and how you might advance the following goals going forward as Commonwealth's Attorney (or if you don't think the issues are relevant, why not):

  1. Pursue equal justice and end mass incarceration by: eliminating disproportionate minority contact through the criminal justice system by reforming drug laws and school disciplinary practices; and by dismantling the school-to-prison pipeline.
  2. Improve social equity and community resilience by strengthening social and family supports and by eliminating racial disparities in health and mental health outcomes.
  3. Improve the quality of our democracy by reducing the corrupting influence of private special-interest money in local elections; by instituting campaign finance reforms, potentially to include public funding of campaigns; and by making it more possible for working-class and lower-income residents to serve in elections or appointed offices.
 

Jeff Fogel's Response:

1.         Mass incarceration and racial equity are the key issues facing a broken system of criminal justice and they are both an issue in Charlottesville. My commitment to keep low level drug offenders out of the criminal justice system will have an impact on racial inequity. Keeping them and offenders with serious mental health issues out of the criminal system and in the public health system provides a better basis for helping those people, keeping us safer and it will also reducing racial disparity. Alternatives to mandatory sentencing will also reduce mass incarceration and racial disparities.

            Decisions made by the prosecutor will determine whether juveniles are diverted from the juvenile justice system, what they are charged with and the case disposition. Working with school administrators can also reduce the number of students referred to the court.

            I have fought for equal justice my entire career. I am an experienced criminal trial lawyer and I have had a civil rights practice challenging police misconduct, including racial profiling, prison conditions and unjust laws.

 

2.         By shifting the emphasis from punitive measures to providing treatment, both the individual and the community will benefit. Focusing on helping people rather than punitive measures will make us safer, contribute to community resilience and save an enormous amount of money that should be reinvested in our communities.

 

3.         Local elections should be non partisan and publicly financed. We must also subsidize the salaries of working class and low income residents so they can afford to serve.          

 

            For more information, please read my campaign statement at www.Fogelforcca.us.