Institutions, social control, racial inequality, family disruption, class, discretion, stigma, and collective action.
Mass incarceration, taught through lived experience and community power.
The Liberation Defense Model™ is an interdisciplinary curriculum for sociology, humanities, African American studies, criminal justice, social work, public policy, and civic-engagement classrooms. Created through the perspective of an African American woman who has been incarcerated, it examines how socioeconomic hardship shapes access to assistance while engaging white middle-class, upper-class, urban, suburban, and rural experiences without stereotyping. Students may bring different philosophies; the shared practice is dignity, evidence, dialogue, and ethical advocacy.
More than a criminal procedure course.
Narrative, dignity, ethics, historical memory, testimony, cultural resistance, and whose knowledge counts.
Case-based discussion, document analysis, reflective writing, role mapping, community research, and a capstone.
Connect academic study to civic participation, reentry, court observation, policy advocacy, and community partnership.
From historical roots to ethical advocacy.
Faculty may use the curriculum as a full course unit, a semester-long seminar, a two-day intensive, or a supervised community-engaged learning program. Fictional composite scenarios vary across race, class, geography, profession, age, and family structure; no participant is required to disclose an active case or personal trauma.
Welcome from Marsha King
Lived experience, family advocacy, and the origins of the curriculum.
Historical Roots of Collective Defense
Black freedom struggles, churches, bail funds, court attendance, and community mobilization.
The Liberation Defense Model™
Six pillars connecting legal literacy, community support, incarceration, reentry, and civic restoration.
Indictments & Bills of Particulars
How state power names alleged wrongdoing and how charging documents shape the case.
The Preliminary Hearing
Probable cause, testimony, waiver, and the social consequences of early court decisions.
Phases of the Criminal Process
A plain language roadmap connecting investigation, charging, hearings, motions, plea or trial, sentencing, review, incarceration, supervision, and reentry.
Bail, Pretrial Release & Detention
Own recognizance, release conditions, excessive bail, detention factors, modification, release planning, and review after denial.
Pretrial Motions & Preserving Issues
Constitutional litigation, evidence, procedure, and the record for later review.
The Sixth Amendment & Due Process
Counsel, jury, confrontation, fairness, and the Scottsboro Boys cases.
When Communication with Counsel Breaks Down
Institutional power, professional roles, informed decision-making, and documenting barriers.
Plea Agreements & Waivers
Plea bargaining, the trial penalty, factual admissions, and rights surrendered.
Proffers, Cooperation & Reductions
Incentives, credibility, punishment, safety, and the sociology of cooperation.
Discovery & the Case File
Evidence, information inequality, privacy, timelines, and community organization.
Trial: Preparing for the Jury and Presenting the Defense
Jury selection, voir dire, trial order, testimony, jury instructions, courtroom preparation, and post trial motions.
White-Collar Cases & Drug Cases
Comparative charging, evidence, resources, stigma, forfeiture, restitution, treatment, and class.
RICO, Conspiracy & Collective Accusation
Enterprises, patterns, association, individualized proof, and ethical defense-team organization.
Substance Use, Accountability & Restoration
Harm, treatment, recovery, housing, relapse planning, repair, and community stability.
Mental Health, Incarceration & Advocacy
Five commonly encountered conditions, continuity of care, safety, accommodations, and reentry.
Youth Justice & Keeping Young People Connected
Youth voice, development, diversion, education, confidentiality, family, and community support.
The Presentence Report & Guidelines
How institutional narratives and calculations shape punishment and imprisonment.
ACCA, Career Offender & Sentencing Discretion
Mandatory punishment, advisory rules, judicial discretion, and sentencing disparities.
Appeals, §2255 & Supreme Court Deadlines
Finality, procedural barriers, post-conviction review, and access to justice.
Participatory Defense & Why the Model Matters
Community-centered participation, court observation, isolation, and justice-impacted leadership.
Build the Support Team
Consent, collective roles, communication systems, accountability, and mutual aid.
Tell the Whole Story
Mitigation, social history, trauma, family systems, humanization, and reentry planning.
Advocate Ethically & Closing Words
Accuracy, privacy, witness safety, responsible advocacy, and community power.
FACULTY DEMONSTRATION · SAMPLE MODULE 07
Bail, Pretrial Release & Detention
Bail is one of the most consequential early decisions because it determines whether a person prepares for trial from the community or from custody. Students examine law alongside race, income, employment, housing, family responsibilities, public safety, and institutional discretion.
This limited demonstration is provided only for institutional evaluation. It does not authorize copying, teaching, adaptation, recording, redistribution, or posting to another platform.
- Explain the protection against excessive bail without claiming an absolute right to release.
- Identify the major federal release and detention factors.
- Analyze how pretrial detention can affect employment, family stability, defense preparation, and plea decisions.
- Design a verified, ethical community release plan.
Teams receive a fictional defendant profile and create a release plan addressing housing, transportation, employment or education, treatment, caregiving, court reminders, and responsible community support.
Discussion promptWhen formally neutral bail factors operate in unequal social conditions, what responsibilities belong to courts, communities, and public institutions?
SAMPLE KNOWLEDGE CHECK
Which statement best describes the federal bail principle?
This demonstration shows the academic structure and one sample activity. Licensed faculty receive the complete instructor guide, participant materials, assessments, answer guidance, implementation support, and authorized digital access.
A teachable academic package—not a folder of readings.
College and university licensing starts at $38,000. Final pricing reflects the institution, courses, participant enrollment, faculty needs, reporting, implementation, and requested support.
Instructor guide, lesson plans, timing, facilitation notes, discussion prompts, answer guidance, and trauma-informed teaching practices.
Protected course access, participant handbook, worksheets, quizzes, capstone tools, progress records, and completion certificates.
Faculty orientation, approved course mapping, accessibility planning, curriculum updates, participant management, and optional guest instruction.
A limited, nonexclusive institutional license. 13th Liberation Village retains ownership; redistribution, resale, public posting, and unapproved modification are prohibited.
HOW TO BEGIN
- Schedule a 30-minute faculty or department demonstration.
- Select the course, department, enrollment, term, and delivery format.
- Receive a written scope, license agreement, and institutional price.
- Orient faculty and launch authorized student access.