Celebrating 2023 Achievements & Looking Ahead to 2024!

As we plan for the coming year, are pleased to present a recap of LEL’s greatest accomplishments in 2023 in advancing our mission to support reasonable, evidence-based reforms that reduce incarceration and keep us safe. Thank you to all of our members for their continued support and participation during a year marked by significant change and growth.

We are looking forward to more exciting opportunities in 2024 to continue to support impactful legislation, collaborate with new and long-standing partners, and organize virtual and in-person events.

Some selected highlights from 2023…

LEL Network: We made great strides in 2023 revitalizing the LEL network and fostering a forum to share and support justice reform policies. We welcomed eight new members, each demonstrating dedication to our mission and leadership in their respective fields (encompassing policing, prosecution, sheriffs, and corrections). Virtual meetings over the year with members of the executive board and those with corrections experience provided avenues to brainstorm ideas and share insights. Through our quarterly newsletters, we regularly shared and publicized innovations happening in the network across the country. And the webinar series we launched in the fall brought national experts and members together in informative and timely conversations about the latest research in public safety & justice system reform, including:

• In October, Understanding Recent Trends in Crime and Violence with Jeff Asher, a nationally recognized crime data analyst, and Christian Bolden, the Robert Hunter Distinguished Professor in the Criminology and Justice Department at Loyola, an expert on gang social networks and organizational processes and author of Out of the Red: My Life of Gangs, Prison, and Redemption.
• In early November, a conversation with LEL member and former New York City Probation Commissioner Vincent Schiraldi and Jeremy Travis, a national expert on evidence-based approaches to mass incarceration, about Schiraldi’s recent book Mass Supervision: Probation, Parole, and the Illusion of Safety, in which he recommends reforming and even abolishing probation and parole. Relatedly, LEL Senior Counsel Ruby Nidiry authored this book review in conjunction with the conversation.
• Later in November, Navigating the New Medicaid Section 1115 Demonstration Opportunity with LEL’s Middlesex County (MA) Sheriff Peter Koutoujian along with Dr. Topeka Sam, the CEO of Ladies of Hope Ministries, and Autumn Boylan, Deputy Director, of the California Department of Healthcare Services.

Public Profile & Advocacy: LEL played an important role in public safety conversations throughout the year amplifying the voice of law enforcement supporting key reforms at the national and state levels. This advocacy work has been central to LEL’s mission since its inception. Here are some highlights from 2023:

Spotlighting law enforcement leadership

• In May, we were honored to organize a plenary panel, “Law Enforcement Leaders Championing Reforms that Advance Safety and Justice” at the MacArthur Foundation’s Safety & Justice Challenge network meeting. Senior Counsel Nidiry moderated the discussion before an audience of over 500 SJC network members in addition to a virtual audience. LEL’s Ramsey County (MN) Attorney John Choi,Washtenaw County (MI) Sheriff Jerry Clayton,and Dave Ryan, Senior Policy Advisor to Sheriff Koutoujian shared how they are working to shrink the scope of punitive enforcement measures, address racial disparities, use data to guide policy, and collaborate with their constituents and stakeholders to create safer communities.

Celebrating the First Step Act

• In December, we organized a Congressional briefing celebrating the 5^th Anniversary of the First Step Act. The panel, moderated by Senior Counsel Nidiry, featured LEL’s Portsmouth (VA) Commonwealth’s Attorney Stephanie Morales and Captain Nicholas Lennie, Chief Deputy to Story County (IA) Sheriff Paul Fitzgerald, who were joined by Ernest Boykin, a beneficiary of the FSA; Daniel Landsman, VP of Policy at FAMM; and Prof. Colleen Eren, author of Reform Nation: The First Step Act and the Movement to End Mass Incarceration.
• The briefing helped educate Hill staff and the public about LEL’s role in supporting the legislation, why such reforms are necessary to make us safer, and the need to build on this historic success.
• And, later that month, on December 21, the actual 5^th anniversary of the signing of the First Step Act, LEL’s Executive Director Ron Serpas and Senior Counsel Nidiry co-authored this op-ed in The Hill celebrating that bipartisan achievement and urging Congress to do more.

Promoting sentencing reform, successful reentry and second chances

• Over the course of the year, we provided support for a number of legislative efforts advancing LEL’s priorities including (among others): providing some healthcare services for incarcerated individuals, reforming sentencing, expanding compassionate release, limiting supervision, and supporting reentry.
  • In March, we joined with many partner organizations in submitting a public comment to the U.S. Sentencing Commission successfully urging the commission to adopt a compassionate release amendment that will expand judges’ discretion in reviewing excessive sentences in certain cases
  • In June, LEL’s Brendan Cox, former chief of police in Albany, NY, and Senior Counsel Nidiry co-authored an op-ed in the New York Daily News urging legislators in Albany to pass New York’s Clean Slate Act, noting that clearing out old records is important for public safety and second chances. The bill was passed by both houses of the legislature — after a lengthy floor debate during which our op-ed was cited. The Governor signed it into law in December!
• Former Executive Director of the National Black Police Association Ron Hampton joined a briefing in November sponsored by Senate Judiciary staff to oppose Senate Joint Resolution 47, that would reverse a DOJ rule that has allowed thousands of people to be released from prison to home confinement under the 2020 CARES Act.
  • Senior Counsel Nidiry also issued a statement calling on the Senate to reject the resolution that would force individuals back to prison after years spent reuniting with their families and reintegrating into their communities.

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If you are interested in learning more about our work, please contact info@lawenforcementleaders.org.