Dear John,

As the great James Brown used to shout, I feel good about IJ’s latest win! Yesterday, we secured another victory for a second chance. ([link removed] )

For 10 years, Joe Armstrong has owned and run WJBE—Knoxville's only black-owned radio station, which was originally owned by none other than the Hardest Working Man in Show Business himself, the late James Brown. Today, WJBE is still a community staple, offering local news and weather, a talk show about the goings-on in Knoxville, broadcasts of church services, up-and-coming artists, free advertising for struggling small businesses, and more.

But the FCC wanted to shut it all down—not because WJBE had done or said anything wrong, but because Joe was convicted of making a false statement on his personal tax returns in 2008, four years before he even bought the station.

Joe served his sentence, paid every dime that was owed, and paid fines on top of that. And for a decade, he’s been successfully running WJBE. Aside from some late paperwork, his record is spotless. But with the FCC’s looming threat, Joe was ready to give up his license—and ownership—in order to save the station. That’s when IJ stepped in.

We helped Joe stand up against the FCC, and on Thursday, an administrative judge for the agency itself ruled that Joe’s license should, and indeed will, remain intact.

While Joe is able to continue serving the Knoxville community, across the country, tens of thousands of laws permanently punish people who have already paid their debts to society. People striving to move forward from their convictions are blocked by government barriers that stop them from earning an honest living.

IJ is leading the fight against these permanent punishment laws. In fact, just last week, as you know, we celebrated another Fresh Start victory for Virginian Rudy Carey—who received a criminal pardon and is now permitted to work as a substance abuse counselor.

Please consider donating to our fight so we can continue helping people like Joe and other Americans as they stand up to government abuse. ([link removed] )

Scott

Scott G. Bullock

President and Chief Counsel

Institute for Justice

Donate Today ([link removed] )

Institute for Justice, 901 N. Glebe Road, Suite 900, Arlington, Virginia 22203

Manage preferences ([link removed] )