Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) welcomes audience to criminal justice reform briefing
On September 19, 2016, congressional staffers and think tank researchers attended a Capitol Hill briefing on the effects of incarceration on American families. AAPSS, Right on Crime, and the Scholars Strategy Network hosted the event. The briefing, moderated by NPR’s crime and justice reporter Carrie Johnson, focused on the May 2016 ANNALS volume and addressed state and federal programs that are working to reduce the country’s prison population and ease prisoner reentry. The briefing was co-sponsored by Senators John Cornyn (R-TX) and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY). Cornyn, who has been pushing criminal justice reform in the Senate, opened the session, noting that while he is disappointed that we haven’t seen more movement on reform, he is confident that meaningful federal incarceration reforms will happen.
Volume editors Sara Wakefield of Rutgers and Hedwig Lee of the University of Washington presented, along with Dr. Nancy Rodriguez, director of the National Institute of Justice (NIJ), who was also a contributor to the volume.
NIJ Director Nancy Rodriguez addresses the audience
Kris Steele, a former Speaker of the Oklahoma State House, was also on the panel, shared his experiences both as a state politician and as director of The Education and Employment Ministry, a nonprofit organization that works directly with the incarcerated. Finally, Criminal justice researcher John Gramlich of Pew presented the status of reform efforts around the country and what state successes might be replicated at the national level.
