The new Administration and the 115th Congress have the opportunity to build a legacy of bipartisan leadership towards a more humane and just criminal justice system, one that supports true public safety, health, and justice for all.

This document draws upon the expertise of the working groups of the Justice Roundtable and others to provide policy recommendations to the new Administration and 115th Congress. It provides concrete proposals that, if adopted, would move us in the direction of a justice system that meets the public safety needs of our nation while respecting the dignity of all persons involved in the criminal justice system: victims of crimes, individuals
charged with crimes, law enforcement, and the
families and communities that surround them.

We urge the Administration to act swiftly to establish a criminal justice reform agenda that reflects the following overarching principles:

• reduce incarceration and over-reliance on harsh punishment
• protect and respect the human rights of all individuals involved in the criminal justice system, including victims, people charged or convicted of crimes, law enforcement, and their families and communities
• achieve racial justice in all aspects of our justice systems
• meet the needs of diverse and commonly overlooked constituencies that are impacted by the justice system including those of women, low income individuals, LGBTQ people, and people with disabilities
• build complete and reliable data to inform our policymaking and ensure fairness and effectiveness in all contexts

The recommendations that follow do not address every aspect of reforming the criminal justice system. They do, however, offer policymakers concrete and specific ideas that reflect these overarching principles and that would improve our system so that it truly serves the interests of justice, public safety, and human rights.

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