“ I want other impacted individuals to know that they can be successful in the legal profession and that we are currently living in an era where involvement with the justice system is no longer a permanent exclusion from participating in the legal profession. So, I urge others not to be fearful about the process of becoming a lawyer. The bar application should not hold you back if you are considering law school. Just do it!”
After serving 2 years in a New York state prison for felony drug possession, Daudi Justin sought to use the knowledge that he learned from his firsthand experience with our justice system as a lawyer representing individuals accused of committing crime. After completing his associates in art degree at Borough of Manhattan Community College with honors, Daudi was accepted at Columbia University where he went on to major in Political Science focused on Political Theory and American Politics. While at Columbia, Daudi participated in campus advocacy for incarcerated individuals. Daudi’s op-ed No Justice in Felon Exclusion was featured in Columbia’s well respected journal. Morningside Review, where he discussed the injustice in the permanent ban of individuals with felony convictions from serving on juries.
Daudi attended CUNY School of Law where he participated in the Defenders Clinic and interned with public defender organizations such as Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem, New York County Defender Services, and Brooklyn Defender Services. Daudi also interned for the Honorable Ellen Gesmer, a judge on the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, First Department, and the Honorable Jenny Rivera of the New York State Court of Appeals.
Working at the Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem was Daudi’s first law student internship, and the experience made a lasting impression on him. He was excited to return there as a law graduate after he graduated law school. His status was promoted to Staff Attorney upon his admission to practice by the Appellate Division of the New York State Supreme Court, First Department. Last year, Daudi became the named plaintiff in a class action lawsuit against the State of New York challenging the constitutionality of the law that prohibits individuals with felony convictions from serving on jury pools. The goal of the suit is to attack outdated laws that have the effect of systemic exclusion of black and brown individuals from participating in our democratic process.