County Criminal Justice Work Group Members Announced

Mental Health, Solitary Confinement and Incarceration Work Group, Length of Stay Work Group and Alternatives to Arrest and Incarceration Work Group. I spot some good people on these lists!!!

June 12, 2015

TO: Interested Parties
FROM: Supervisor Paul Rusk, Chair, Dane County Public Protection and Judiciary Committee
SUBJECT: Appointments to Criminal Justice Work Groups

On May 21, the Dane County Board unanimously approved resolution 2015 RES-556 “Investigating Alternatives to Incarceration, Solutions to Racial Disparities and Mental Health Challenges in the Dane County Jail and Throughout Dane County’s Criminal Justice System.” This resolution creates three work groups: 1) Mental Health, Solitary Confinement and Incarceration Work Group; 2) Length of Stay Work Group; and 3) Alternatives to Arrest and Incarceration Work Group.

We asked the community to volunteer to serve on the work groups and I am absolutely delighted to say we had an impressive response. One-hundred and thirty-five people expressed an interest in participating, making it extremely difficult to appoint 11 individuals to each group. To those of you who were not appointed, I want to thank you for your interest in serving the community, and invite you to attend meetings and follow the proceedings through minutes and agendas.

In order to assist the work groups in addressing the ambitious goals set forth in 2014 RES-556, County Board Chair Corrigan and I have identified, for each work group, a facilitator from outside of county government, as well as a professional county staff member with content expertise. Each facilitator will facilitate five work group meetings over the course of the summer, serving as the work group leader. The facilitator will draft a summary document, including the top five recommendations that require funding and the top five recommendations that do not require funding.

My goal is to hear the voices of the community. For that reason, I would like the county staff members who applied to serve as “consultants” to the groups. These individuals bring great content-area knowledge and should have a full participatory role in deliberations, but they will not vote.

Finally, as you know, the County Board is asking the work groups to accomplish much over the course of the summer. Each work group will meet five times. If you are an appointed member of a group, the expectation is that you will attend at least four of the five meetings. Please let me know if this will not be possible so someone else can be appointed in your place. Work group appointees will soon receive an email indicating the dates of the meetings so they can determine if the proposed schedule will work for them.

Today, by way of this memo, I am appointing the following individuals to serve on the Mental Health, Solitary Confinement and Incarceration Work Group:

Members:
Susan Balliette
Supervisor Carousel Bayrd
Sina Davis
Phyllis Fuller
Jackie Hunt
Matt Jahnke
Bonnie Loughran
Judge Richard Niess
Dr. Andrew Putney
Elizabeth Rice
Augustine Tatus

County staff who will participate with this work group are Todd Campbell, Mary Grabot, Mark Olson, and Mark Twombly, as well as Dr. Douglas Kramer.

The facilitator for the Mental Health, Solitary Confinement and Incarceration Work Group is Jim Moeser. Jim was the long-time Juvenile Court Administrator for Dane County, focusing on restorative justice initiatives. He has worked for the Wisconsin Department of Corrections, as well as with the Wisconsin Council on Children and Families. He has a depth of knowledge and experience in mental health and incarceration issues. He will be assisted by Lynn Green, the director of the Dane County Department of Human Services.

I am appointing the following to the Length of Stay Work Group:

Members:
Savion Castro
Linda Ketcham
Rachel Kincade
Reverend Chris Long
Judge Nicholas McNamara
Irene Toro Martinez
Mayra Medrano
Pamela Oliver
Supervisor Leland Pan
Eric Upchurch II
Dorothea Watson

County staff who will participate with this work group are Jerome Dillard, Carrie Simon, and Michelle DeForest.

The facilitator for the Length of Stay Work Group is Jacquelyn Boggess. She is an attorney and the Co-Director of the Center for Family Policy & Practice where she has worked since its inception in 1995. Her work as a policy analyst involves the investigation of the welfare system, the family law courts, and the child support system. Her work has resulted in connections and collaborations with domestic violence organizations and progressive advocacy groups working on poverty reduction, violence prevention, and economic justice for parents and children. She will be assisted by Marcia MacKenzie, Dane County Corporation Counsel.

I am appointing the following to the Alternatives to Arrest and Incarceration Work Group:

Members:
Reverend Joseph Baring
Jerome Flowers
Judge William Hanrahan
Donna Hart-Tervalon
Supervisor Dorothy Krause
Consuelo Lopez Springfield
Ananda Mirilli
Kris Moelter
Corinda Rainey-Moore
Lisa Rickert
Supervisor Shelia Stubbs

County staff who will participate with this work group are Fran Genter, Jared D. Pierce, Kurt Pierce, as well as Stacy Taeuber, who works with the UW Immigrant Justice Center.

The facilitator for the Alternatives to Arrest and Incarceration Work Group is Lindsey Draper. After having served in Milwaukee County Children’s Court for approximately 20 years as an Assistant District Attorney and Assistant State Public Defender, Lindsey Draper was appointed as a Circuit Court Commissioner in 1992 and served in that capacity for 13 years from Sept. 2006 until April 2014. He also served as Wisconsin’s Disproportionate Minority Contact Coordinator working to implement terms of the federal Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act and was the Staff Director of the Commission on Reducing Disparities in the Criminal Justice System. He is currently Chairman of the American Bar Association Standing Committee on Client Protection. John Bauman, Dane County Juvenile Court Administrator, will provide staff assistance for Lindsey.

Again, I want to express my sincere appreciation to everyone who applied to participate in the criminal justice work groups and to those of you who helped recruit potential participants. Dane County is committed to making improvements to our criminal justice system, particularly in the areas of mental health and racial disparities. We look forward to hearing the community’s voices and listening to your ideas and recommendations.