Karen Muñoz

Karen Muñoz will be joining LatinoJustice PRLDEF where she will support detained people, families, and advocates fighting the jail system in two Texas counties with advocate-led litigation and a policy strategy that will ultimately free people.

The Texas Jail Liberation Project will focus on Hidalgo and Hays counties -- two communities Karen calls home. In Hays County, advocates — including people released from jail — are beginning to change the political landscape and push elected officials toward reform. This advocacy, largely comprised of grassroots organizing, outreach to media, and communication with elected officials, is missing an essential tool: litigation and legal support. The Texas Jail Liberation Project seeks to empower organizers, families of those detained, and detained people themselves with desperately needed accountability by complementing existing advocacy with legal tools.

Prior to law school, Karen co-founded Mano Amiga, an organization focused on immigration and criminal justice reform in Hays County. Meanwhile, at home in Hidalgo County, Karen's little brother was experiencing the same injustices in the county jail that she saw happening in Hays County. Those experiences inspired this fellowship.

Fellowship type: Justice Catalyst

Organization: LatinoJustice PRLDEF

Project name: Texas Jail Liberation Project