Angela Kim | Legal Assistant | Women’s Justice Project

Before her incarceration, Angela was a critical care nurse for more than 15 years. She entered the profession to help people through some of the hardest moments of their lives and she carried that same compassion with her when she was sentenced to more than 17 years in prison at Coffee Creek Correctional Facility. While inside, she experienced firsthand how the prison healthcare system dehumanizes and fails people: especially women, trauma survivors, and those with chronic medical needs. She went from being a provider of care to someone denied it. That shift changed her understanding of health, justice, and what real accountability should look like.

Today, she works with us as a paralegal supporting legal efforts and policy advocacy that focus on healthcare inside the Oregon Department of Corrections. Her work includes elevating the voices of those still incarcerated, contributing, and advocating at the state level for changes in how we treat - and fail to treat - people in custody. Angela brings a dual perspective to this work: as a former medical professional and as someone who survived the system she now works to change. Her goal is to help build a system rooted in dignity, transparency, and care for all people, no matter where they are.