JusticeText was founded in 2019 by Devshi Mehrotra and Leslie Jones-Dove, two University of Chicago computer science graduates motivated by the 2015 release of dashcam footage in the Laquan McDonald case. The company operates as a for-profit social enterprise and has raised approximately $3 million in total funding from investors including Reid Hoffman and John Legend. As of 2024, the platform serves more than 100 public defense agencies, nonprofit legal service providers, and private criminal defense firms across the United States.
The platform's primary function is automated transcription and analysis of audiovisual evidence — including body-worn camera footage, interrogation videos, and jail calls. Attorneys upload or sync evidence files and receive full transcripts, AI-generated summaries, and automated flags for legally significant events such as Miranda warnings, use-of-force incidents, and sobriety test administration. The tool is designed to reduce the time attorneys spend on manual video review, which JusticeText reports has freed up close to 50% of attorney time previously spent on evidence review.
JusticeText is used primarily by public defenders and legal aid attorneys who carry large caseloads and have limited time and staff resources compared to prosecution offices. The platform fits into case preparation workflows where review of hours of video evidence is required before hearings, and where identifying specific legally significant moments efficiently can materially affect case outcomes.
The platform's focus on the public defense and legal aid segment — rather than prosecution or law enforcement — is its defining characteristic. By building features around the evidentiary challenges most common to defense practice, including large volumes of body camera footage provided late in discovery, JusticeText addresses a gap that general legal technology platforms have not prioritized.
Hands-on review pending.
