South Carolina ACLU Joins Fight To Free BLM Protestor In Prison

A South Carolina protestor who was sentenced to prison for talking back to police continues the fight for her release.

In the summer of 2020, Brittany Martin joined others in her South Carolina community in protests for the Black Lives Matter movement. Today, she remains in prison for talking back to police while at the demonstrations.

Martin was arrested on multiple charges, including instigating a riot and threatening the lives of police officers. She spent nearly a month in jail for the offense, with an arrest warrant issued the day of her release, as reported by Capital B.

Since her first detainment, Martin became entangled in years of pre-trial litigation before she was sentenced in May 2022. The mother, however, remains adamant about her wrongful arrest and conviction. Now, her supporters continue to advocate for not only her release but also her exoneration.

Martin is currently being held at the Logan Correctional facility in Lincoln, Illinois, for breaching the peace in a high and aggravated manner. The charge has been used before in South Carolina to criminalize protestors’ actions and discourage using their right to organize. Her trial lawyer says that Martin was solely convicted for speaking her mind during the demonstration.

Martin’s prison sentence is another case among organizers who faced legal trouble for engaging in protests. Her appeal is now being handled by the South Carolina Chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, which details that “discriminatory enforcement” of common laws led to her conviction.

“With this kind of vagueness in criminal laws, [it] leads to arbitrary and discriminatory enforcement. That is exactly what we’re seeing in Ms. Martin’s case,” stated her appellate attorney, Meredith McPhail.

While in prison, Martin is leaning on the community as they rally behind her and the fight for freedom.

“What I am asking for the public, from God’s people, is to help me survive this,” expressed the social justice advocate. “Give that same energy that I was given when I was out there. The same love, candor and care … is what I need for my life to be saved so that I can come out and celebrate that moment with everyone of my exoneration.”

Martin is expected to be released in March 2025.