RED Founder David Lee Windecher is a trailblazing orator, author and lawyer in the growing movement to end mass incarceration and redress racial inequity in the criminal justice system.
In his autobiography The American Dream / HiSstory in the Making, David shares the harsh realities of growing up as an impoverished immigrant on the streets of Miami-Dade County. He was arrested 13 times and spent over 7 months incarcerated as a juvenile. He dropped out of high school and joined a gang for protection. His street name was Red. David endured the brutal climate of the lawlessness on the streets by both criminals and the police. All the while he dreamed of becoming a lawyer and fighting for those who don’t have the resources to pay for justice.
David began his path to self-rehabilitation when he earned his GED in March of 1998 and took his first academic steps toward his childhood dream of becoming a lawyer. He graduated Summa Cum Laude from American Intercontinental University in Fort Lauderdale, Florida in 2005 and earned his Juris Doctorate degree from John Marshall Law School in Atlanta, Georgia in 2012. David was admitted to the Georgia Bar in 2012 and the Florida Bar in 2014. David is a member of the Georgia and Florida Court of Appeals, the Georgia and Florida Supreme Court, the Northern District of Georgia United States District Court and the American Bar Association. David specializes in criminal defense, juvenile law, and expungement procedures.
David’s transformation from the defendant to defense attorney boldly challenges our historical definition of justice and exposes our deeply flawed ideas about criminality. His story compels us to acknowledge the loss of our humanity within the legal system and reconsider how our punitive approach damages people and our community at large.
