Working Groups are the lifeblood of the Justice Roundtable, carrying out the day-to-day work of the coalition.
The Commutations and Pardons Working Group works toward a robust use of the clemency power and calls upon the President to release the broadest spectrum of people possible without compromising public safety.
Working Group Chairs:
Mark Osler, Professor
Cynthia Roseberry, ACLU
The Crimmigration Working Group highlights the connections between immigration enforcement and the criminal justice system and serves as a shared space for advocates to jointly address reform on both fronts.
Working Group Chairs:
Jasmine Mickens, Open Society Policy Center
The Directly Impacted Peoples‘ Working Group (DIP) focuses on providing an insider’s perspective on criminal justice matters. DIP are subject matter experts and work toward creating an environment where Directly Impacted People Subject Matter Experts are consulted and leveraged in all matters related to criminal justice reform.
Working Group Chairs:
Andrea James, National Council for Incarcerated and Formerly Incarcerated Women and Girls
Norman Brown Project New Opportunity
The Drug Policy Reform Working Group promotes initiatives that seek to reduce the societal harms associated with drug use and the over-incarceration that has resulted from the “war on drugs’” excessive sentences for drug crimes.
Working Group Chairs:
Grant Smith, Drug Policy Alliance
Mel Wilson, National Association of Social Workers
The Faith in Action Working Group works through the Interfaith Criminal Justice Coalition to mobilize the large and diverse faith community to engage in federal criminal justice advocacy.
Working Group Chairs:
Jose Woss, Friends Committee on National Legislation
The Human Rights Working Group recognizes the dignity of all people, and advances the use of international human rights standards to strengthen criminal justice advocacy in the U.S.
Working Group Chairs: TBD
The Law Enforcement Reform Working Group shines a light on the importance of accountability in the criminal justice system by addressing law enforcement overreaching by police, prosecutors, and drug task forces.
Working Group Chairs:
Sakira Cook, Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights
Kristina Roth, Amnesty International, USA
The Pre-Trial and Courts Working Group addresses issues on the front end of criminal system reform between arrest and sentencing.
Working Group Chairs:
Kanya Bennett, The Bail Project
Sakira Cook, The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights
Kyle O’Dowd, National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers
The Prison Reform Working Group concentrates on changing harsh and degrading conditions faced by people incarcerated in the United States.
Working Group Chairs: TBD
The Racial Justice Working Group seeks to insure that the impact of race is addressed in all of the Justice Roundtable’s programmatic efforts.
Working Group Chairs:
Angelyn Frazer-Giles, National Network for Justice
Nkechi Taifa, The Taifa Group
The Reentry Working Group focuses its efforts on reauthorization of the Second Chance Act and securing full funding for programs that help formerly incarcerated persons successfully reintegrate into their communities. It also works toward the elimination of the collateral consequences of a criminal conviction.
Working Group Chairs: TBD
The Sentencing Reform Working Group lobbies Congress to reassess the role and impact of the counterproductive sentencing laws it enacted over 25 years ago and to eliminate harsh prison sentences as the centerpiece of the nation’s crime-fighting strategy.
Working Group Chairs:
Sakira Cook, Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights
Liz Komar, The Sentencing Project
Nina Patel, Southern Poverty Law Center
The State Issues Working Group helps to facilitate the interchange of ideas between those working on federal policies and those contributing to state reforms, highlighting best practices from the states to help change the conversation at the federal level.
Working Group Chairs:
Nicole Porter, The Sentencing Project
Monica Reid, National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers
The Youth Justice Working Group seeks policy reform that addresses the underlying social context which primes entry into the juvenile and criminal justice systems with the goal to break the cycle of incarceration before it begins.
Working Group Chairs:
Marcy Mistrett, Campaign for Youth Justice (JJDPA)