Every year, hundreds of thousands of people come home from prison and jail. From day one, they face rules about voting, jobs, housing, record clearing, and supervision. Those rules exist in writing - but they are scattered across fifty states, written in hard legal language, and they change all the time. Most people never get a fair chance to understand them.
Be In The Know exists to close that gap. We turn official law into plain English so people navigating reentry can understand their rights, see the actual sources, and know what step to take next.
Meet JO
JO is our question-answering assistant. When you ask JO something, it searches a reviewed library of official state and federal law and plain-language summaries for your state and topic. JO writes its answer only from what it finds there, in simple words, and shows you numbered citations you can click to read the official source yourself.
JO is careful on purpose. If it does not have a trusted source for your question, it says so instead of guessing. It will not invent laws, deadlines, or promises. And it always points you to real legal help when your situation needs it.
Where the information comes from
Our library is built from official statute text and reviewed plain-language summaries covering all fifty states across six topics: voting rights, record clearing, housing, employment, police interactions, and probation or parole. We also monitor state legislatures each week so that when a law we rely on may be changing, a person - not a computer - reviews and updates it.
What we are not
Be In The Know is an educational tool. We are not a law firm, JO is not a lawyer, and nothing here is legal advice. Using this site does not create an attorney-client relationship. Laws change and every situation is different, so before you make a decision that matters, talk to a legal aid organization or a lawyer licensed in your state. A good place to start is LawHelp.org.
Who built this
Be In The Know was created by Jozewski Enterprises, built on a simple principle: people should not have to read legal code alone to understand the rights that shape their future.
See also our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.