State Agencies

The United States has not followed a coherent set of guidelines on the development and use of risk and needs assessment, and most states and counties have not tested their instruments for accuracy and fairness across race, ethnicity, and gender. In partnership with BJA, the CSG Justice Center worked with a group of 26 national experts, including researchers, practitioners, and policymakers, to develop a set of 13 practical guidelines and a suite of practical resources that advise criminal justice agencies on the use of post-conviction risk and needs assessments.

In partnership with other agencies, CSG hosted the National Summit to Address States’ Criminal Justice Challenges event which brought together leaders and teams from all 50 states to learn more about the critical criminal justice challenges states are currently facing, and how data and research and other state examples may help identify new and effective strategies to address those challenges.

7/10: Video call with Carli Stark (Director and Legislative Liaison, Minnesota Association of Community Corrections Act Counties (MACCAC), to have an introductory call with staff (1 person, 1 agency)Â

Objective 2: Provide sustainability assistance to states completing the JRI process Â
o   Site visit meeting with the Minnesota’s Community Supervision Leaders (September 29, 2023) â€" CSG Justice Center staff met with Minnesota’s Community Supervision leaders and the Community Supervision Advisory Committee to deliver an overview of all Justice Reinvestment Initiative technical assistance by the CSG Justice Center beginning in September 2021 and ending with the proposed scope for additional technical assistance.Â

9/25: Call with Dr. Nicole Swiderski (Research Scientist, NJSPB) to update CSG Justice Center team on OIT progress and propose an on-site meeting to accelerate the project. 9/27: Call with Dr. Nicole Swiderski (Research Scientist, NJSPB) to debrief about NJSPB agency meeting and discuss IT limitations, case management system updates, and staff changes. 11/9/23: Video call with Paul Martin (Support Services Administrator, WYDOC) todiscuss the pitch for the project and receive the go-ahead to discuss the project with awider range of DOC leaders and staff.

7/6: Video call with Nikki Miguel (Communications Specialist, CJI), Abigail Strait (Senior Policy Specialist, CJI), Ashley Neufeld (Design & Digital Media Specialist, CJI), Maureen Flanagan (Policy Specialist, CJI), Clarissa Dias (Senior Policy Specialist, CJI), Valerie Meade (Director, CJI), Ben Shelor (Senior Policy Advisor, BJA), and Jeffrey Locke (Senior Policy Advisor, BJA) to discuss the continued update of Category 1 documents, as well as the progress of the Category 2 briefs and the website dissemination strategy. Â

7/10/23 - Video conference with Danielle Wallace and Brooks Louton from ASU to discuss ASU hiring, moving funds, and DOC requirements for work.
7/25/23 â€" Phone call with Brad T. Douglas from WV DCR to discuss RCA project scope and implementation of technical requirements. 8/7/23 - Video conference with Danielle Wallace (Associate Professor, School of Criminology and Criminal Justice) and Brooks Louton (Assistant Professor, School of Criminology and Criminal Justice) of Arizona State University to discuss placement of ASU students for RCA.  Â
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7/5: Call with Allen Godfrey (Director of Field Services, Minnesota Department of Corrections) to continue establishing objectives for TA and working group recommendations.
7/6: Call with Brian Mirasolo (Deputy Commissioner, Field Services, Massachusetts Probation Service) to finalize working group recommendations and upcoming site visit details and logistics.

The United States has not followed a coherent set of guidelines on the development and use of risk and needs assessment, and most states and counties have not tested their tools for accuracy and fairness across race, ethnicity, and gender. With support from BJA, the CSG Justice Center developed an advisory group of 28 national experts in the field to create a set of 13 specific guidelines and a suite of practical materials that are aimed at different audiences, including criminal justice practitioners and leaders and legislators.

Objective 1: Create a set of data standards to inform budget and policy decisions. General Program Calls:
7/5 Call with Katrice Williams (Senior Fellow) and Katherine Terrell (Program Officer) from The Cleveland Foundation to strategize a Justice Counts luncheon in August.
7/5 Call with Chris Daniel (Executive Director) from American Jails Association to discuss project updates and project deliverables.
7/5 Call with Gwyn Katis (Grant Programs Analyst) from the American Probation and Parole Association to discuss project updates and project deliverables.