Emily Shouse

Growing up, I always knew I was meant to help people in some capacity. I remember sitting in a huge lecture my freshman year of college and watching a clip of the Stanford Prison Experiments, where prison inmates were being horribly treated by prison guards. Something about this struck a nerve in me. Finding out that this was just an experiment didn’t take away the feeling of sadness I had for inmates who were all alone behind concrete walls at the whim of officers in power. I knew that I wanted to work in the criminal justice system in that moment.

Before going off to college, I grew up in a small, Connecticut town that was my whole world for a long time. I was very competitive in athletics, running track and playing volleyball, but my true passion was gymnastics. I spent my nights, weekends, and summers doing the sport I loved. Besides all the fun and games and flipping in the air, over time I realized that gymnastics is a very lonely sport. You are the only person that creates your fate, whether you win, lose, stick the landing, or fall. You are the only one you can rely on and in the end, you are the only person that relishes in your victories.

When I gave up gymnastics in college, I had all this drive and passion in me and didn’t know what to do with it, until I found my passion for law. I realized quickly that unlike gymnastics, the law is about so much more than myself. Working in law is like a team sport. You have to learn to depend on others, help others, and work with others to get better. The team must work together to win, lose, fall, or stand up again.

In 2018, I graduated from the University of Rhode Island with a Bachelor’s degree in criminal justice and criminology. By far the most impactful experience for me was participating in a program shadowing youth offenders in a juvenile detention facility. Seeing the inside of the facility made me realize that people are not just numbers, everyone has a very intricate and complex story and life. I learned to appreciate making connections that were outside my world and putting a face and a story to people who are told they are just a number.

I have spent several years working as a law clerk for Ruane Attorneys while I finished my Juris Doctor. I am proud to join the team as a lawyer now that I have graduated from law school. I am a member of the Connecticut Young Lawyer’s Association, criminal law society, Phi Alpha Delta legal fraternity, and the defense appellate clinic. As an attorney, I hope to focus my efforts in criminal defense, civil rights, and post conviction relief because I want to help people overcome what is often the most difficult period of time of their lives.