In 2019, stemming from her years of living with mental health and substance use concerns, Lisa Adams was sentenced to two years at Nova Institution for Women for selling methamphetamines in her hometown of Saint John, New Brunswick. 

Like many others whose lives are plagued by substance use concerns, using drugs was a way for Lisa to cope with ongoing mental health challenges, including a period of severe postpartum depression after her son was born. Further, resulting from extensive abuse from men, she suffered from immense trauma and used drugs to numb the pain.  Aside from being a tool for physical survival, financially supporting herself and her family, selling drugs gave Lisa a sense of power that being abused had stripped away from her. Reflecting on this time in her life, and subsequent incarceration, Lisa says

Sadly, this trajectory, this cycle of abuse and involvement with the criminal justice system, is not uncommon for survivors of violence. Drawing from a report by the Canadian Association of Elizabeth Fry Societies (2015), approximately 80 per cent of women serving at least two years in Canadian federal prison are survivors of physical or sexual abuse (Battered Women’s Support Services, 2024). This relationship between abuse and incarceration is not a coincidence. Because of self-defense and survival, such as with Lisa’s experience of using and selling drugs to cope and survive; and criminalization of survivors, rather than protecting them, gender-based violence survivors are at a greater risk of negative justice system outcomes (Canadian Research Institute for the Advancement of Women, 2017). 

The sense of autonomy that Lisa had regained was quickly taken away through her experience of being arrested and placed in detention. Disempowering her further, prison guards wrongfully accused her of bringing drugs into the prison, by hiding them in her vagina, which led to her being placed in a dry cell- a space without a toilet or running water, where guards can constantly monitor the subjected individual for contraband. Although Lisa, upon first being incarcerated, still had some drive to reclaim ownership over her body and reject conditions imposed by authorities, her experience of unimaginable abuse in the dry cell, spanning 16 days, had a psychological impact that “… began to erode that sense of autonomy once more”. However, even during these dark, dehumanizing days, Lisa found inner strength and longed for control, which she demonstrated through letter writing:

Connecting with Emma Halpern, the Executive Director of Elizabeth Fry Society of Mainland Nova Scotia, Co-Founder of PATH Legal, and a fiercely dedicated human rights lawyer, set Lisa on her pathway to justice. Lisa called Emma, who answered right away. Emma, who met Lisa’s story with validation, determination, and empathy, quickly prioritized building a relationship with Lisa and offering consistent support:

With the pro-bono representation of both Emma and PATH Legal’s Managing Lawyer, Jessica Rose, Lisa filed a constitutional challenge against Section 52(b) of the Corrections and Conditional Release Act (CCRA), presented at a habeas corpus hearing, arguing that being placed in a dry cell violated multiple provisions of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms: Section 12, the prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment; Section 7, the right to life, liberty, and security of the person; and Section 15, the right to equality and freedom from discrimination. Aside from these breaches of the Charter, the PATH team presented dry celling as being discriminatory on the basis of sex, claiming that those with vaginas may undergo more extreme, severe treatment than those without vaginas. Finally, in January of 2021, a year after Lisa began this legal challenge, Nova Scotia Supreme Court Justice John Keith agreed to strike down the federal law permitting use of dry cells when guards suspect swallowing of contraband or hiding it in a body cavity. 

Upon being asked how sexual violence, harassment, abuse, and neglect in prisons can be alleviated, Lisa advocated for the abolishment of these institutions all together. Instead, crime prevention must be prioritized through better funding of comprehensive, wraparound mental health support services. Elaborating, she shared “One thing that really needs to be addressed is the need for trauma therapy- culturally informed trauma therapy, especially for Indigenous people. People in prison are traumatized and victimized before committing crime and people make choices based on experiences in life. If the government better funded mental health services, it would be better”.

Lisa continues to be deeply connected to both PATH Legal and Elizabeth Fry Society of Mainland Nova Scotia. Through her relationships with these organizations, including her integral contributions to the On Our Terms project, a gender-based violence survivor-led initiative that aimed to develop a common language, structure, and credibility across Atlantic Canadian Elizabeth Fry Societies for providing gender-based violence support; along with her current work with Wellness Within, Lisa is able to use her skills and lived experience to compassionately support other women. Alongside dedicating herself to helping others, her ongoing, long-term goal is healing, moving forward, and continuing to embrace new opportunities: “When staying in the right direction, my possibilities and opportunities are endless”.