The Women’s Justice Commission is a multi-year research, policy, and communications initiative that documents and raises awareness of the unique challenges facing women in the justice system and builds consensus for evidence-based reforms that enhance safety, health, and justice. The project spans the full scope of the adult justice system—from arrest and diversion through prosecution, incarceration, release, and community supervision—with a particular focus on trauma-informed and gender-responsive prevention and intervention strategies.
Commission Recommendations
The CCJ Women’s Justice Commission reached consensus on new recommendations calling for tailored justice system responses to prevent crime, strengthen families, improve health, cut taxpayer costs, and break cycles of victimization and incarceration.
our Work
As Women’s Share of Arrests Doubles, National Commission Calls for Tailored Justice Responses
Led by former AG Loretta Lynch, and advised by Oklahoma First Lady Sarah Stitt, CCJ panel releases strategic plan to prevent crime, strengthen families, and cut costs
Supporting Women in Crisis
With crisis often at the root of women’s involvement in the justice system, this brief examines the two main categories of community-based responses, concluding with a research agenda for future strategies.
Illicit Drug Use Among Justice-Involved Females
Using data from the 2023 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, this brief finds that, while males in the general population were more likely to use illicit drugs in the past year than females, this pattern reversed among justice-involved people.
Event Recording: Policing Domestic Violence: Past, Present, and Future
The Council on Criminal Justice’s Women’s Justice Commission and a panel of experts examined the complex impact of domestic violence policing and explored promising strategies to improve safety, accountability, and justice for women.
Event Summary: Domestic Violence – Understanding the Data and Policy
On October 23, 2024, the Council on Criminal Justice hosted a live webinar on domestic violence and women’s justice involvement with experts from CCJ’s Women’s Justice Commission (WJC) and Crime Trends Working Group (CTWG).
Women’s Justice: A Preliminary Assessment of Women in the Criminal Justice System
This assessment reviews existing research about women’s pathways into the system and the challenges they face from arrest through reentry.
Commission Members
Loretta Lynch(Chair)
Former U.S. Attorney General
Sarah Stitt(senior adviser)
First Lady, Oklahoma
Courtney Bryan
Chief Executive Officer, Center for Justice Innovation
Norma Cumpian
Assistant Deputy Director, Anti-Recidivism Coalition
Nancy Gertner
Retired Judge, U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts; Senior Lecturer, Harvard Law School
Ed Gonzalez
Sheriff, Harris County, Texas
Leticia Longoria-Navarro
Executive Director, The Pathfinder Network
Chris Mathias
State Representative, Idaho
Anne Precythe
Owner, Precythe Sturm Advisory Group, LLC; Former Director, Missouri Department of Corrections
Emily Salisbury
Associate Professor of Social Work; Director, Utah Criminal Justice Center, University of Utah
Topeka K. Sam
Founder, The Ladies of Hope Ministries
Brenda V. Smith
Professor, American University Washington College of Law; Director, Project on Addressing Prison Rape
Jillian Snider
Resident Senior Fellow, R Street Institute; Retired NYPD Officer
Carolyn Sufrin
Associate Professor, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Department of Gyn/Ob; Founder and Director, Advocacy and Research on Reproductive Wellness of Incarcerated People
Tori Verber Salazar
Founder and CEO, Law Offices of Tori Verber Salazar; Former District Attorney, San Joaquin County
Whitney Westerfield
Director of Legal and Government Affairs, LifeSkills; Former State Senator, Kentucky
Pamela Winn
President and CEO, RestoreHER US.America
Stephanie Akhter
Director, Women's Justice Commission
Expert advisers
Alyssa Benedict
Executive Director, CORE Associates, and Co-Founder, The Women's Justice Institute
Deanne Benos
Co-Founder and Director, The Women’s Justice Institute
Janaé Bonsu-Love
Director of Research, Building Movement Project
Marium Durrani
Chief of Staff, Civil Rights Corps
Erica King
Senior Manager, Center for Effective Public Policy National Resource Center on Justice-Involved Women
Anadora (Andie) Moss
Founder and CEO, The Moss Group
About The Art
The banner design was created by artist sheri crider, an Albuquerque-based artist whose work “reimagines the best and worst of ourselves” and engages nontraditional audiences in galleries, prison cells, classrooms, courtrooms, and other spaces. The Women’s Justice Commission also thanks CCJ member Syrita Steib and incarcerated women in graphic design for Oregon Corrections Enterprises for their inspiration.
ARTIST’S STATEMENT
“The portraits reflect real women who have and still are navigating incarceration. The individuals behind statistics and reports are crucial to fostering transformation in the criminal justice system.”
Supporters
Support for the Women’s Justice Commission comes from Ford Foundation, the George Kaiser Family Foundation, the Joan Ganz Cooney & Holly Peterson Fund, The J.B. and M.K. Pritzker Family Foundation, the Ms. Foundation for Women, the Navigation Fund, the National Football League, The New York Women’s Foundation, Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies, and The Tow Foundation. The Commission also receives support from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, The Just Trust, Southern Company Foundation, and other CCJ general operating contributors.
