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Sonia "Sunny" Jacobs

1947-2025

Amicus is devastated by the news of our patron and dear friend Dr Sunny Jacobs' death. Anyone who attended the Amicus training or has seen her speak will know the close relationship she has with Amicus, Margot and the team.

Sunny’s strength shone through her life of horrific injustices; she was wrongfully convicted and sentenced to death by Florida, her first husband was executed for a crime he did not commit, her parents' death in an airplane accident and the struggle to rebuild her life after being released after 17 years of incarceration. She fought with everything she had for justice, empathy and love. She met her beloved Peter Pringle when she was touring Ireland speaking and educating people on the death penalty, they bonded over shared experiences and their combined faith in the power of forgiveness and love (also the healing power of yoga!) They married in an unusual ceremony with several A-lister celebrities who had played Sunny in the broadway play, The Exonerated that featured her story; we would joke that actually Peter had several wives as the famous actors all chimed up with “I do” at the critical point. Sunny was heartbroken when Peter died in 2023, he was her soulmate, but she vowed to continue the important work they had started with the Sunny Center Foundation, supporting the long term incarcerated and wrongfully convicted.

She was proud to have been awarded an honorary doctorate in law from Brighton University for her outstanding contribution to post conviction rights in 2023. Sunny truly believed in the goodness of every person, with forgiveness and empathy at the heart of her own healing journey. She touched everyone she met with her unbound love and will be deeply missed by all who knew her. Her legacy will live on through the continued work of Amicus, The Sunny Foundation and all of us whom she inspired.

We ask that the wishes of her family to their privacy are respected, and thank everyone who has reached out for their kindness.

Founded in 1992 in memory of Andrew Lee Jones, Amicus was built to fight for those facing a death sentence in the US who are often, as a consequence of history, economy, and race, the most vulnerable in society.

Andrew, despite lack of clear evidence, was charged with murder and later executed in Louisiana in 1991. Tried in front of an all-white jury, represented by an inexperienced lawyer with details of his mental illness withheld by the prosecution, his case did not stand a chance. Andrew is only one of the many innocent people who received the death penalty as a result of lacking proper legal representation.

Amicus believes in due process and the right to a fair trial and works to provide assistance in a number of ways to ensure access to the kind of legal representation that could have saved Andrew's life. The casework programme, assisted by pro bono volunteers from affiliate international law firms, plays a crucial role in the detailed investigation of currently active capital cases in the US. Amicus also publishes the leading Capital Punishment Journal, runs a volunteer placement programme in the UK and the US and a bi-annual training program for lawyers and students working on death row cases. The Spring Training 2025 will be held both in person and online on the weekends of 7th-9th March and 22nd-23rd March. Tickets can be booked here.

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Amicus is the trading name of the Andrew Lee Jones Fund Ltd. Charity number: 1019651. Registered number: 2797826.

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