CRIMINAL JUSTICE REFORM RESEARCH NETWORK
A Prevention-Focused Racial Equity Approach to Transforming the Criminal Legal Landscape
Background
Over 2 million individuals in the US are engaged in some form of incarceration or supervised reentry. This unprecedented rate of incarceration disproportionately impacts Black Americans and is a result of failed public policy undergirded by outdated often deficit-based research.
We seek to chart a new path forward in strategic community with researchers, strategists, and advocates who will leverage cutting-edge research centering system-impacted communities.
Policy Landscape
A key focus of our criminal justice prevention research is understanding the structures and pathways that lead to the over-incarceration, and their racialized impacts - particularly for Black Americans. Researchers conducted a systematic review of major federal policy and identified priority states for addressing and promoting prevention environments.
Research Questions that Drive Our Policy Landscape Analysis
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To what extent do state and federal criminal justice reform policies align with prevention, intervention, and aftercare reforms?
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What relationships, if any, exist between policy implementation and the real and perceived socioeconomic impacts on Black communities & and other communities of color?
3
Where are the most effective entry points for research - in policy, practice, and philanthropy - in eliminating mass incarceration particularly for Black Americans?
Federal Policy Overview
Our initial search began with 9,000+ federal legislative proposals across the criminal legal landscape. Through a rigorous multi-step policy analysis, we present summary findings of the 43 legislative proposals signed into law since 2001 that address areas of prevention, intervention, and aftercare.
Breakdown of Federal Policy Distribution
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Prevention
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Intervention
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Aftercare
Takeaways
• Our analysis is consistent with the reality that greater than 90% of the bills introduced in Congress do NOT become signed into law, clarifying the sometimes inefficient nature of the federal legislative process.
• Of the 43 laws analyzed, the overwhelming majority contain provisions that address areas of prevention before individuals become engaged in the criminal legal system.
• Of the prevention provisions, nearly 1/3 impact areas of elementary, secondary, and higher education, focusing attention on educational environments as spaces of prevention.
• There has been an over 150% increase in aftercare related provisions (since 2012), suggesting increased legislative momentum around supporting returning citizens.
• Additional mixed-methods research will be needed to develop a meaningful and fuller understanding of the contemporary enablers of over-policing and mass incarceration.
State Policy Overview
Researchers conducted a comprehensive analysis of 25 indicators across education, economics, health, social environment, and school discipline to identify the best and worst performing states for creating prevention-focused environments.
Researchers at the USC Race and Equity Center aim to amplify focused and paths of potential research that can wield more realistic and impactful solutions for African Americans and those most impacted by the criminal legal systems.
Ways to Engage
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TELL YOUR STORY
We believe that policies should be shaped by those most impacted by them. Decision-makers on school boards, city councils, state capitals, and federal agencies share few experiences in common with the communities most impacted by their policies.
The research on which these institutions rely is often deficit-based – highlighting the problems but downplaying the conditions.
We want to hear directly from impacted communities that have felt the direct or indirect effects of incarceration or engagement at any level of the criminal legal system. We are interested in understanding the people, processes, and policies that were key to navigating your journey.
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BECOME A NETWORK FELLOW
The USC Race & Equity Center invites nominations for researchers and advocates to become a Racial Equity CJR Network Fellow. Fellows will play a key role in setting priorities for policy, research, and partnership. Nominate yourself or someone to the network if you/they have interest in:
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Producing and leveraging quantitative and qualitative research to develop and engage new audiences, methods, and partnerships in criminal justice reform (CJR) efforts;
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Joining a community of racial-equity minded scholars along with all points of the criminal legal landscape focused on prevention-focused research and policy;
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Leveraging the scholarly and experiential expertise and activities of the racial equity prevention cohort (REPC) to create policy tools, rapid-response research, and peer-reviewed literature;
DR. KENDRICK DAVIS
Dr. Davis is the Chief Research Officer of the USC Race & Equity Center and Associate Professor of Research teaching in the Rossier School of Education and Sol Price School of Public Policy. An engineer by training, Kendrick has served as an education and science policy advisor locally, nationally, and internationally. Dr. Davis was an American Association for the Advancement of Science Congressional Fellow through the American Educational Research Association and was recognized as an Emerging Scholar by Diverse publication.
JAMIRA BURLEY
Jamira Burley is the Director of Social Impact North America for Adidas and founder of IAMHERETO, working at the intersection of community, impact investments and philanthropy. Over the last 15 years, her work has taken her across the United States and 30+ countries working with collective impact teams representing business, government, and youth leaders to make an equitable change by evaluating and reforming business structures to enable profit and social impact. Jamira was recognized as an Obama White House Champion of Change and a Forbes Under 30 Honoree in Law and Policy. She has worked with Target, Deloitte, Sephora, American Express, Ponds, and Adidas. Previously, she was featured on MSNBC, CNN, Forbes, C-SPAN, BBC, and Al Jazeera
For more information, please visit www.jamiraburley.com or follow her on Twitter/Instagram @JamiraBurley