Four Decades for Justice
December 28, 2023
On November 28, 2023, the Queens County Criminal Court entered an order on consent resentencing pro bono client A.M. and securing her release. A.M. had been incarcerated since June 2010. She was originally sentenced in June 2011, pursuant to a plea agreement, to a 20‑year determinate sentence plus five years’ post‑release supervision for first‑degree manslaughter after her romantic partner, who had subjected her to severe domestic abuse, killed her former partner, who had sex trafficked her and also subjected her to severe domestic abuse.
The DVSJA is a New York statute that allows courts to resentence domestic violence survivors who can show that they were a victim of domestic violence at the time of their crime, that domestic violence was a significant contributing factor to their crime and that the sentence imposed for that crime was unduly harsh. A.M. grew up in Puerto Rico. Beginning in childhood, she was abused by her family and then ultimately abused by her romantic partners. After moving to New York City, she was subjected to sex trafficking, and when she managed to escape the trafficking, the man who helped her continued to abuse her. During a confrontation between her partner and her former trafficker, her partner killed her former trafficker. A.M. pleaded guilty to first‑degree manslaughter, acknowledging she had coordinated the confrontation.
Cravath partnered with the Legal Aid Society to develop the facts and evidentiary support for her resentencing application. After more than two years of investigation, Cravath filed her resentencing application, seeking a new sentence of five years’ incarceration and five years’ post‑release supervision pursuant to the DVSJA sentencing framework. Cravath then engaged the Queens DA’s Office in an effort to reach an agreement on a new sentence or, alternatively, minimize the contested issues. When it became clear that the Queens DA’s Office would not consent to a resentence under the DVSJA framework, Cravath negotiated a new sentence of 15 years’ incarceration and five years’ post‑release supervision. A.M. was resentenced on November 28, 2023, and released on December 21, 2023.
Cravath represented A.M. as part of the Firm’s Incarcerated Survivors Initiative, a program devoted to assisting incarcerated survivors of domestic violence and sexual abuse in resentencing proceedings, parole hearings and civil rights. A.M. is now the fourth client of the Incarcerated Survivors Initiative helped to obtain release from prison.
The Cravath team included partners Antony L. Ryan and Helam Gebremariam and associates Melissa A. Syring and Catherine G. Sheets.
Deals & Cases
February 22, 2024
On February 13, 2024, the New York State Appellate Division, First Department, reversed the convictions of Tommy Davis, who was simultaneously prosecuted for two unrelated incidents involving firearms. Cravath represented Mr. Davis on a pro bono basis alongside co‑counsel at the Office of the Appellate Defender.
Deals & Cases
October 19, 2023
On August 30, 2023, Judge Leo A. Finston of the Newark Immigration Court granted asylum to a Cravath pro bono client persecuted by gang members in El Salvador.
Deals & Cases
October 12, 2023
On October 4, 2023, an immigration judge (IJ) granted asylum to Cravath pro bono client Johanna R., a transgender woman from El Salvador who had been abused by gang members based on her identity.
Deals & Cases
September 21, 2023
On September 19, 2023, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit vacated a district court’s order denying class certification to all children who are or will be in the custody of New York City’s foster care system. Cravath, working on a pro bono basis, represents the putative class alongside co‑counsel at A Better Childhood (“ABC”).
Celebrating 200 years of partnership. In 2019, we celebrated our bicentennial. Our history mirrors that of our nation. Integral to our story is our culture.
Attorney Advertising. ©2024 Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP.