[NFBWATlk] Jordan Landry EOY Appeal

[Nightingale, Noel]

From: Disability Rights Washington <trangl at dr-wa.org<mailto:trangl at dr-wa.org>>
Sent: Thursday, December 28, 2023 8:01 AM
Subject: Jordan Landry EOY Appeal

Following an extensive nationwide search, Disability Rights Washington’s (DRW) Board of Directors named Carrie Basas the new Executive Director of DRW.
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My name is Jordan Landry, and I am an army veteran of Operation Enduring Freedom who is totally blind and have been since 2007.  In 2019, I was in an altercation with two Seattle police officers and jailed in the King County Correctional Facility for three years, six months, and nine days before ultimately being acquitted on all charges against me by a jury of my peers.

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Image Description: A black man in his 30s wearing sunglasses and an orange shirt with a small clipped on microphone sits in front of four white doors.


When I was incarcerated, I was not given a mobility aid (white cane), oriented to the jail dorm, or instructed on how to use the telephone or any jail services. I was repeatedly the victim of theft, acts of violence, and relentless ridicule and humiliation. The powers that be decided that for safety concerns, it would be best if I were placed in an isolation cell. There was absolutely no one to talk to and because of my disability, I spent 24 hours a day in complete darkness and silence, despite sensory deprivation being widely recognized as a form of torture.

The strain of being accused of such heinous crimes and potentially facing two life sentences, coupled with subhuman living conditions, left me spending most of my waking hours contemplating suicide. I languished under these atrocious conditions for more than five months before an inmate worker witnessed me fall without a cane and inquired if I’d ever heard of an organization called Disability Rights Washington.

I called DRW, and after less than 48 hours, attorney Ethan Frenchman and community liaison Darya Farivar stood outside of my cell and assured me that they would advocate for all of my rights. Hours after our first meeting, I was given a white cane that allowed me to safely navigate the day room and access the shower. Four days later, I was afforded the privilege of being the first ever inmate incarcerated in a county jail to receive an audiobook player from the Washington Talking Book and Braille Library, along with several audiobooks. Ultimately, DRW ensured the facility implemented protocols to allow confidential communication with medical staff, access to the law library, regular visits from the chaplain, much needed communication from my family, and an accessible confidential voting unit<https://click.actionnetwork.org/ss/c/Mqag7sW8TIW-nixyBdulQpuvS_kS7LIQW0dMtisaPJOKP5-bQvsPrfBoDosKmzLojHIJGypXBMNXNrqpGYptQJLIl-AqRFx9q86rJFBgkkNOF2rBcfqHbcbl7Smx-zUzpJb7FmEPNaY_XtF02oCltmifdoc3XZx6cRVs_Xk0TFkB8yED1LDJHE4Usqvi4wLgeyN9TPPSgYtMwEQAU-uvsq_k2vHunUvteuJt1U82IUuygI0oTg-CmUbo3VXr2_0vOrDzL_Sgj1ncjJ8rDQhcT_L18JuVTyFQqv_7bxGspqe-MGJ6xCqRPHIjZu9NYyIQUZS5h4MOv-IRZusDSdsdkprPk6pNEfA3Jyo9LtB0lQU/42i/qx9w5vBJRuaWhZIPR8Z5HQ/h0/nZX5aszxSpk6KYpMFhmzQ-fdjZLk64IhJfiXN5-4RqM> - a first in our nation’s history. I even received regular haircuts - allowing me a measure of dignity that I hadn’t known up to that point in my incarceration.

I’ve since learned that all this was only possible, because of DRW’s “golden key” unique federal right to access people with disabilities, wherever they’re served. I cannot express how meaningful these victories were to me because they allowed me to participate in my own defense in a manner that I was not able to before and went a long way in allowing me to access the due process afforded to me by the constitution. DRW’s extraordinary efforts changed my life.

Today, I serve on the Washington Joint Legislative Task Force on Jail Standards and volunteer with Disability Rights Washington (DRW). It is with a great sense of pride and gratitude that I lay before you the most shameful period of my life, if only to highlight the very important work that this most worthy organization does on a daily basis. It’s been said that justice is not a word, or even a concept to be defined, but a decision to be made in the face of injustice.

Will you support DRW and decide to join us to advocate for the most vulnerable and overlooked among us?
[Donate today]


Disabled leaders are at the center of DRW’s work to create systemic change, whether advocates like Jordan Landry, class members in a lawsuit, community organizers or our new Executive Director, Carrie Basas. Join us in seeding a new world, with dignity, equality, and self-determination for people with disabilities by making a contribution today. Your donations power our work to make change.
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Image Description: A group of Disability Rights Washington staff, volunteers, and children smiling while standing, sitting and kneeling in three rows in front of a white wall.
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Disability Rights Washington, 315 5th Ave S, Ste 850, Seattle, WA 98104
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