[Content warning: graphic descriptions of violence and abuse]

Monique Jordan is a criminalized survivor of intimate partner violence who has been incarcerated for 12 years for taking the life of her abusive girlfriend. Over the course of their relationship, Monique’s girlfriend threatened on three separate occasions to kill Monique if she ever cheated or left the relationship. Monique's girlfriend hit her hard enough to leave marks, called her vulgar names, spit on her, and was otherwise emotionally abusive. Even before their relationship, Monique was a life-long survivor of physical abuse and sexual violence. She grew up with a violent father who beat her and molested her sister, she was molested by a highschool teacher and a security guard, and she escaped a traumatic and abusive first marriage all before turning 20. Later, Monique served in the military and experienced sexual harassment twice before being honorably discharged.

On the night of the incident, Monique’s girlfriend started an argument with her when Monique asked for extra seasoning for her dinner. She threw out all of Monique’s food and started swearing at her and then left their apartment. When she returned in the middle of the night, Monique told her she wanted to leave and move closer to her family. Her girlfriend instantly hardened. She retrieved her gun from the bedroom and told Monique that she was going to kill herself. Then she turned the gun to Monique and threatened to kill her first. After a tense standoff during which Monique’s girlfriend kept her gun trained on Monique at all times, Monique made a move for the gun and was able to grab it. She pointed it back at her girlfriend and began to speak but before she could even finish her sentence, the gun went off. Monique’s girlfriend died from her injuries a few days later. 

On October 21, 2009, Monique accepted a plea deal for felony murder with aggravated assault as the underlying felony. Now at Pulaski State Prison, she works for Prison Industries for no pay, making clothing for Georgia men’s prisons; bulletproof vests, uniforms, and insignia for officers in Georgia; as well as hospital gowns and face masks for frontline workers. She has also learned the art of beekeeping and is studying to get her Associate’s degree in Sociology and Bachelor’s degree in Communications from Ashland University, working diligently to turn her life around.

the devi co-op, a grassroots coalition of Georgia community members seeking to liberate criminalized survivors of gender violence, calls on the Cobb County District Attorney Flynn Broady to vacate Monique’s conviction, resentence her to a sentence length she has already served, and initiate court proceedings to get her out of prison. Sign this petition to tell Broady to #BringMoniqueHome.