SECOND CHANCE JUSTICE
Second Chance Justice (SCJ) is an interfaith coalition of people of varied backgrounds and beliefs who share a common commitment to undoing the legacy of mass incarceration. As a campaign of the Massachusetts Communities Action Network, Second Chance Justice is driven by a belief in redemption and the transformative power of compassion.
SCJ is comprised of returning citizens and those who are privileged to stand in solidarity with them
SCJ works for a more equitable system of justice for all by amplifying the voices of people most directly impacted by mass incarceration
SCJ elevates their stories to promote an urgency for change by looking to them to help us deepen our understanding of the impact of injustice
In 2020 and 2021, Second Chance Justice organized and advocated for the Governor, Advisory Board of Pardons, and Governor's Council to grant one of the first two commutations of a first degree life sentence in Massachusetts in 25 years. As a result, SCJ’s organizing campaign opened the door to systemic changes in the clemency process in Massachusetts.
WILLIAM ALLEN - Paving The Way
William Allen’s return home from a life without parole sentence was made possible through the organizing of Second Chance Justice. In fall 2022, he celebrated his return to the Brockton community with a public event accompanied by former New England Patriots team member Devin McCourty, now an analyst for NBC's Football Night in America (right).
THE WORK TODAY - Reimagining Clemency and Reentry
Second Chance Justice leader Sarah Agebite welcomes participants to a SCJ Teach-In hosted by Harvard Divinity School in February 2026.
For the past two and a half years, Second Chance Justice members have researched reentry, clemency, and racial justice, SCJ’s areas of focus within the criminal legal system. The team has interviewed key individuals, met with various organizations, held research meetings, and studied best practices in other states. Additionally, they met with over 100 incarcerated and recently released individuals who have provided anecdotal evidence, which has deepened understanding and informed recommendations as related to: the clemency process; the challenge of the commutation application, particularly for those without legal council; and the defeatist mindset, rooted in the inordinate wait times for a response, that leads people to not even apply for parole, medical parole, a pardon or commutation. The team has also worked with more than twenty individuals on their own journeys asking for clemency.
THE POWER OF STORY
Second Chance Justice centers the voices of returning citizens in this work, because these testimonies do more than share personal experience; they challenge harmful assumptions, reveal the truth of reentry, and call us into a broader vision of community where people are not defined by incarceration, but by their humanity, resilience, and potential. Click an image for each person’s story. Click here to learn from the power of these gentlemen’s stories.
William Allen
Thomas Koonce
Ramadan Shabazz
Jean Thebaud
Ruben Pina
COMING SOON
SECOND CHANCE JUSTICE TEACH-INS ON ZOOM AND IN PERSON
NEXT TEACH-IN: May 20, 2026 on ZOOM from 6-7:30pm. Click here to register.
Hear the stories of formerly incarcerated people struggling for true freedom
Learn about the broken and unjust aspects of our current reentry system
Discover SCJ’s vision for change and how you can be a part of it
TO BE NOTIFIED ABOUT UPCOMING TEACH-INS or TO EXPLORE THE OPPORTUNITY TO HOST A TEACH-IN PLEASE EMAIL secondchancejustice@mcan.us
SUBJECT LINE: SCJ TEACH-IN SCHEDULE
Join Second Chance Justice’s Mailing List: