2021
Annual Report
Foreword
In 2019, a small but mighty team launched the Council on Criminal Justice (CCJ), a unique organization with an ambitious goal: to cut through partisan and ideological divides and build common ground for criminal justice policies rooted in facts, evidence, and fundamental principles of justice.
Our first full year of operation, 2020, was a time of dizzying upheaval for our country, and 2021 brought continued uncertainty, hardship, and heightened political discord. Despite these ongoing challenges, CCJ thrived.
In 2021, the Council tackled criminal justice’s most difficult and pressing questions, producing strategic, actionable policy roadmaps on policing, violence, and COVID-19. In doing so, we demonstrated that even in our hyper-polarized political environment, it remains possible for people of diverse backgrounds and perspectives to reach consensus on critical issues of the day.
As detailed below, we’ve expanded and further diversified our membership. We have become a trusted source of information and ideas for policymakers across the political spectrum as well as for journalists, practitioners, and advocates. Our data, reports, ideas, and leaders appeared in more than 5,200 media stories last year—further evidence that we’ve solidified our position as the center of gravity for the top leaders, experts, and innovators across the criminal justice field.
We look forward to continuing this essential work together to advance safety and justice—and our democracy—in 2022 and the years ahead.
Adam Gelb
President & CEO
Laurie Robinson
Chair, Board of Directors
Policy Projects
Three CCJ member task forces issued dozens of reports in 2021. Council staff and task force members presented the research findings and policy recommendations in more than 75 briefings in Washington, state capitols, and city halls, and to professional associations, advocacy groups, technical assistance providers, researchers and others. Our live web events were attended by over 3,000 participants from all sectors and disciplines of the field.
Composed of leaders from law enforcement, public health, academia, and community violence reduction programs, the Violent Crime Working Group produced a series of bulletins to provide timely guidance to leaders facing increases in gun violence. Its final report, Ten Essential Actions Cities Can Take to Reduce Violence Now, highlights the key steps cities should immediately take to curb violence — and how state and federal officials can support these efforts.
Our Task Force on Policing identified the policies and practices most likely to reduce violent encounters between officers and the public and improve the fairness and effectiveness of law enforcement. The task force, which included leaders in law enforcement and civil rights, published assessments of more than two dozen of the most common police reforms and selected five top priorities. The panel also released Policing by the Numbers, a statistical portrait of law enforcement that provides crucial context for decision-makers.
Led by former U.S. Attorneys General Loretta Lynch and Alberto Gonzales, our National Commission on COVID-19 and Criminal Justice released a set of final recommendations for system improvement, along with reports assessing the pandemic’s effects on state and local budgets, crime rates, prisons and jails, domestic violence, racial disparities, and opioid use disorder.
"Two former Attorneys General – one Democrat, and the other Republican; one Black, the other Latino – they have come out with a great report. Let’s use [the COVID Commission's] report as a foundation upon which to build back our judicial system." U.S. Rep. James Clyburn (S.C.)
The Council has quickly become a trusted source of criminal justice-related information and expertise for the media. Journalists increasingly sought out CCJ as an authoritative source for crime trends, credible experts and research, and the history, politics, and practicalities of a wide range of reforms. In 2021, more than 5,200 stories cited our data, reports, and ideas, with coverage appearing in every major national broadcast and print outlet, as well as regional, local, and specialty press. Since 2019, our work, leaders, and members have been featured in more than 10,000 stories and opinion pieces.
Beyond policy development task forces, CCJ informs the field with evidence and insights through bulletins, white papers, and convenings. In 2021, we issued 12 reports on key topics, including homicide trends, crime rates, law enforcement, recidivism, and the legacy of the 1994 federal crime bill. These resources translated complicated data into clear, credible information for policymakers, stakeholders, media, and the public.
CCJ is the only organization that combines a criminal justice think tank with invitational membership. Our members are among the top thinkers and doers in the field, and we harness their collective expertise to produce policy roadmaps on key problems across all sectors of the system. Membership rewards the accomplishments of established leaders and serves to develop a strong, diverse cohort of emerging leaders who will steer the field through future challenges. Thirty-five new members joined us in 2021, bringing our total membership to 227.
Our membership continues to prioritize inclusion of formerly incarcerated individuals, directly impacted people, victims and survivors, women, and LGBTQ+ people as organizational leaders, task force members, and vital contributors to our work.
For more information about some of our members, visit our UpClose profiles here.
The Council has quickly become a trusted source of criminal justice-related information and expertise for the media. Journalists increasingly sought out CCJ as an authoritative source for crime trends, credible experts and research, and the history, politics, and practicalities of a wide range of reforms. In 2021, more than 5,200 stories cited our data, reports, and ideas, with coverage appearing in every major national broadcast and print outlet, as well as regional, local, and specialty press. Since 2019, our work, leaders, and members have been featured in more than 10,000 stories and opinion pieces.
Beyond policy development task forces, CCJ informs the field with evidence and insights through bulletins, white papers, and convenings. In 2021, we issued 12 reports on key topics, including homicide trends, crime rates, law enforcement, recidivism, and the legacy of the 1994 federal crime bill. These resources translated complicated data into clear, credible information for policymakers, stakeholders, media, and the public.
CCJ is the only organization that combines a criminal justice think tank with invitational membership. Our members are among the top thinkers and doers in the field, and we harness their collective expertise to produce policy roadmaps on key problems across all sectors of the system. Membership rewards the accomplishments of established leaders and serves to develop a strong, diverse cohort of emerging leaders who will steer the field through future challenges. Thirty-five new members joined us in 2021, bringing our total membership to 227.
Our membership continues to prioritize inclusion of formerly incarcerated individuals, directly impacted people, victims and survivors, women, and LGBTQ+ people as organizational leaders, task force members, and vital contributors to our work.
For more information about some of our members, visit our UpClose profiles here.
"The Council has quickly established itself as a credible leader on criminal justice policy. Lawmakers and advocates across the political spectrum put their trust in CCJ’s work, and with good reason." Mark Holden Board Member, Americans for Prosperity Board of Trustees Co-Chair, Council on Criminal Justice
The Path Ahead
Guiding Policy
Looking ahead, we’re excited to tackle a new set of issues where our staff and boards believe CCJ’s nonpartisan, evidence-based approach can move the needle. Launching soon are a high-level task force on long prison sentences and a research project to illuminate the impacts of specific state justice reforms on racial and gender disparities in correctional populations. The Council also is partnering on an initiative to guide policy adoption and implementation under the proposed Medicaid Reentry Act, which would make incarcerated individuals eligible for health benefits before release. Finally, planning is well underway for a multi-year veterans justice project aimed at better serving the men and women who have served our country.
Building Consensus
In 2021, CCJ continued to demonstrate its commitment to creating a platform for diverse thought leadership and action by including on our staff two of the nation’s most respected advocates on the left and right. Khalil A. Cumberbatch, a formerly incarcerated leader, is Director of Strategic Partnerships; Right on Crime founder Marc Levin is CCJ’s Chief Policy Counsel. Cumberbatch and Levin will conduct multiple activities and projects designed to showcase the alignment they share and inspire others to build bridges and find common ground.
Advancing Understanding
In the coming months, we will be launching two new efforts to expand awareness and understanding of critical, timely criminal justice research: Highlighted on our website and social media channels, #FridayFact will feature a series of brief, objective criminal justice facts captured from sources such as the National Institute of Justice, the Bureau of Justice Statistics, and the Council's research analyses and policy reports. To elevate and translate timely research, posts in our Admissible Evidence blog will distill key findings and implications from studies published in leading academic journals.
Thank You, Funders
CCJ deeply appreciates our institutional and individual donors, who made our progress possible. Our major organizational investors in 2021 include:
Arnold Ventures Bank of America California Health Care Foundation Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies The Charles Koch Institute Craig Newmark Philanthropies David Rockefeller Fund Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation Eugene M. Lang Foundation Ford Foundation Georgia Power Harry Frank Guggenheim Foundation John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Joyce Foundation Justice and Mobility Fund Margaret and Daniel Loeb Foundation Microsoft National Football League Rx Foundation Southern Company #StartSmall
Arnold Ventures Bank of America California Health Care Foundation Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies The Charles Koch Institute Craig Newmark Philanthropies David Rockefeller Fund Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation Eugene M. Lang Foundation Ford Foundation Georgia Power
Harry Frank Guggenheim Foundation John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Joyce Foundation Justice and Mobility Fund Margaret and Daniel Loeb Foundation Microsoft National Football League Rx Foundation Southern Company #StartSmall
For media inquiries about this report, please contact: Jenifer Warren at jwarren@counciloncj.org. For general inquiries, contact the Council at info@counciloncj.org.
For media inquiries about this report, please contact: Jenifer Warren at jwarren@counciloncj.org. For general inquiries, contact the Council at info@counciloncj.org.