Meet Alicia Luncheon | Criminal Defense Attorney and Social Justice Advocate

We had the good fortune of connecting with Alicia Luncheon and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Alicia, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
I was tired of putting black people in jail. Period. So I guess I should provide some context. I started my firm in July-ish of 2020. This was the summer George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbury, and Breonna Taylor were murdered. So I was feeling very much like fuck the police. During all of those murders, I was working as a prosecutor at the Fulton County District Attorney’s office. So I was saying fuck the police while technically I was the police. Not a good feeling. I became a prosecutor because I thought I could stop the school to prison pipeline and prevent black people from going to jail because prosecutors have so much power in the criminal justice system. In reality, I learned that I had very little power and that if I didn’t follow the sentencing guidelines set forth by my superiors, I could be reprimanded or fired. After seeing so many black people murdered and not receiving justice, I decided I could no longer be apart of the criminal “justice” system. I do not believe you can make meaningful change on the inside. So, now I’m a criminal defense attorney and I’ve never looked back. Now, my job is to keep black and brown people out of jail and I love it.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
At heart, I guess you could say I’m an actress. I have a background in theatre and performance. Some say I do too much but honestly, am I dong too much or are they doing too little? To me, being a lawyer is a lot like performing on stage. When I’m in court representing a client, I don’t think of myself as a lawyer. I think of myself as a storyteller. It’s my job to communicate my clients story to the jury such that they understand why my client did or didn’t do whatever the prosecutor says they did. Regarding whether it was easy to become a lawyer: the answer is a resounding hell no. Law school is a bitch. -10/10 do not recommend. I don’t know any other lawyers in my family so I always felt super lost in school. I absolutely suffered from imposter syndrome. But I want the world to know that if I can do it, so can you. I’m just a regular black woman from the Southside of Atlanta. So hopefully another black woman will look at me and know that the sky is the limit. Representation matters.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
My best friend would definitely be a borderline drunk so we would have to hit up all the drinking spots. Bottomless mimosas is, well, a way of life. We would hit up Garden Parc for their amazing brunch then maybe head over to Barcelona wine bar for several pitchers of Sangria. That night we would head over to the beltline and hit up the James Room. One night, we would have to go to the rooftop at Ponce City Market just for the gorgeous view. Another day, we would probably have a picnic at Piedmont Park and go over to East Atlanta to eat at Golden Eagle before it closes! If my friend wanted to dance, we have no shame in bar hopping on Edgewood. Finally, I would rent out a cabin in the blue ridge mountains so we could become one with nature, relax in the hot tub, ride horses, and other nature shit like that.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My mom. Hands down. I was a bad kid growing up, I mean, getting suspended from school bad. I was an average student at best in high school and I really only attended college because that’s what everyone else was doing. But, even when I was sneaking out of the house, skipping class, and spending an ungodly amount of time in detention, my mom always believed in me. She is the driving force behind everything I do and I could never repay her for the undying support she’s shown me. So this is for you mom. I don’t way it enough but, I love you!

Website: https://theluncheonlawfirm.com/

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Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alicialuncheon/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/luncheonlawyer

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thegeorgiaattorney

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC89-9ttIs99MgYLMSq6SBWw