معرفی
LaJuana S. Davis is the Judge J. Russell McElroy Professor of Law and Director of the Innocence Law Clinic at Samford University's Cumberland School of Law. She joined the institution in 2007 after serving as a visiting professor at Florida Coastal School of Law. Prior to academia, she practiced law at the Equal Justice Initiative of Alabama, focusing on capital litigation, habeas corpus cases, and community advocacy. Davis holds a BA from Georgia State University and a JD from Harvard Law School. She is licensed to practice in Alabama, Georgia, and Minnesota, with federal court admissions including the U.S. Supreme Court.
Her teaching focuses on Criminal Law and Procedure, Appellate Advocacy, Business Crimes, and Postconviction Remedies. Her research emphasizes criminal procedure, women’s rights, and the right to counsel, particularly advocating for juveniles and indigent defendants. Davis has presented widely on topics such as classroom techniques in criminal law teaching, wrongful convictions, and race in sports litigation.
Her scholarship spans school finance litigation, sentencing disparities, voting rights implications, and immigration due process. Notable works include analyses of crack cocaine sentencing reform and the Voting Rights Act’s impact on local governance. Davis’s community engagement includes consulting for the Federal Defenders Office and recruiting pro bono legal counsel for underrepresented defendants.
Her professional involvement includes memberships in the Birmingham Bar Association and Magic City Bar Association. Davis has authored manuals for capital defense and postconviction strategies, reflecting her commitment to improving legal representation in high-stakes cases.
