Legal action tracking
Ongoing efforts
We are fighting to preserve necessary violence prevention programs on all fronts, including in Court.
Since this Administration has taken over, Courts have played a critical role in restoring people’s rights and stopping blatantly illegal actions. We are fighting for the same in our case. On this page, you will find updates on our litigation and relevant pleadings.
Filings in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia
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On May 22, the Vera Institute for Justice, The Center for Children and Youth Justice, Stop AAPI Hate, Force Detroit, and Health Resources in Action filed a Class Action Law Suit challenging the Trump Administration’s illegal DOJ cuts.
In Vera Institute of Justice, et. al. v. United States Department of Justice, et al., the parties have requested a preliminary injunction to halt these cuts. “Absent a preliminary injunction, Plaintiffs will suffer irreparable harm—multi-year projects will terminate abruptly, specialized staff will be laid off, critical services will be withdrawn from communities facing some of the gravest safety concerns—all compounded by lasting damage to hard-earned reputational trust.”
You can read the complaint here.
Amicus briefs filed
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This amicus brief is submitted by small, community-based nonprofit organizations that were subgrantees of organizations with terminated grants. Amici assert that these abrupt actions threaten their existence, disrupt services for vulnerable populations, and undermine the very priorities OJP claims to uphold.
The brief provides specific examples of how defunded organizations—like Silence is Violence, JIRN, Forever Takes a Village, The BRidge Agency, and Beyond Harm—have lost critical capacity, laid off staff, and been forced to reduce or eliminate programs that directly address violence and support at-risk communities.
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This amicus brief is submitted by local governments, officials, and prosecutors from 25 jurisdictions across 19 states. These leaders emphasize that the grants in question fund a wide array of essential services—ranging from violence prevention and victim support to law enforcement training and correctional improvements—that directly impact the safety and well-being of their communities they represent.
Amici stress that local jurisdictions depend on nonprofit partners like the Plaintiffs to carry out life-saving initiatives. According to amici, the DOJ’s decision not only lacks legal justification and but also ignores the real-world consequences to public safety, including increased burdens on police, reduced support for victims, and weakened efforts to address issues like mental health, substance use, and gun violence.
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This amicus brief is filed by State Attorneys General of 18 states and the District of Columbia. The A.G.s argue that these cuts—made without warning—gutted programs that fill critical gaps in the public safety net, support victims, and complement traditional law enforcement.
The states emphasize that the Justice Department’s justification for the terminations—claiming a redirection of priorities—is both legally unsupported and factually inaccurate. The defunded programs align with the very goals the Administration claims to champion, including crime prevention, victim support, and community safety.
Join us in the fight.
Sign up to get updates on the funding cuts, calls to action, petitions to sign, and news about our progress. Because real safety takes all of us.