NC First Lady Anna Stein Visits Black Mountain Prison to Support Women's Reentry Programs

North Carolina First Lady Anna Stein joined Department of Adult Correction Secretary Leslie Cooley Dismukes to host a driver's license restoration clinic at Western Correctional Center for Women in Black Mountain, bringing in staff from Asheville-based Pisgah Legal Services and students from the Duke Law School Pro Bono Program to help incarcerated women begin clearing the legal obstacles that stand between them and a functional life after release.

The clinic gave women access to free legal services including record review, petition drafting, and criminal record expunction assistance, all focused on restoring suspended licenses that are often lost to unpaid traffic fines, court debt, or non-driving suspensions. Secretary Dismukes framed the stakes plainly: "Having a driver's license as a form of ID and to enable transportation is one of the most important tools for achieving stability after prison." Without one, getting to a job or caring for family becomes a bureaucratic obstacle course from the first day of release.

"I'm proud of the Department of Adult Correction for reaching out to Pisgah Legal Services and Duke Law School's Pro Bono Program to help this group of women be better prepared to reenter society," Stein said. She and Dismukes also hosted Oklahoma First Lady Sarah Stitt and North Dakota First Lady Kjersti Armstrong at the facility, where the group toured rehabilitative programs alongside the clinic visit. "Having First Lady Stitt and First Lady Armstrong here to see the great things we are doing in North Carolina, like this clinic, has been a bonus," Stein added.

Dismukes credited both partner organizations directly: "I commend Pisgah Legal Services and the Duke Law School Pro Bono Program for their commitment to improving lives and opening doors for those leaving incarceration and reentering our communities."

The clinic is part of a broader statewide effort. The North Carolina Department of Adult Correction periodically partners with law schools and legal organizations to hold driver's license restoration clinics at prisons across the state. Pisgah Legal Services, which serves low-income clients across western North Carolina, regularly runs such clinics using volunteer attorneys and legal partners. The Duke Law School Pro Bono Program brings law students into the work, pairing record review and petition drafting with a stated mission of expanding access to employment and housing through expunction and license restoration.

The three First Ladies had spent the previous two days in Asheville for the National Governors Association's Youth Mental Health Action Lab, an event that brought together First Spouses and state mental health policy staff from across the country to explore how governors' offices can advance mental health policy. The stop at Western Correctional Center for Women added a direct look at one state's approach to reducing reincarceration through practical legal aid.