Excessive Punishment: How the Justice System Creates Mass Incarceration

How can we reimagine the justice system to support restoration instead of retribution?

Our panelists believe the American criminal justice system cannot reduce its dependence on mass incarceration until we confront our impulse to punish in ways that are excessive, often wildly disproportionate to the harm caused. Instead, our panel will explore the transformative power of second chances, including those who have benefited from them—and those who advocate to ensure our system provides them.

Prompting this discussion is the publication of a series of essays, Excessive Punishment: How the Justice System Creates Mass Incarceration, that trace how a maze of local, state and federal agencies have contributed to mass incarceration and deterred attempts at reform.

Kevin McCracken from The Last Mile, Michael Mendoza, and Ken Oliver from the Checkr Foundation will join L.B. Eisen from the Brennan Center for Justice and retired Judge LaDoris Cordell for a thoughtful conversation on the second chances their organizations are providing and efforts to reform the existing criminal justice system.

SPEAKERS

L.B. Eisen, Senior Director of the Justice Program, Brennan Center for Justice, New York University School of Law; Editor, Excessive Punishment: How the Justice System Creates Mass Incarceration

Kevin McCracken, Chief Growth Officer, The Last Mile

Michael Mendoza, Former Director of Advocacy, Anti-Recidivism Coalition and Member Practitioner, Office of Juvenile Justice

Ken Oliver, Executive Director, Checkr Foundation

LaDoris Cordell, Judge (ret.); Author, Her Honor: My Life on the Bench…What Works, What’s Broken, and How to Change It

5:30 p.m. doors open & check-in
6–7 p.m. program
7 p.m. book signing
(all times Pacific Time)

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

The Commonwealth Club, 110 The Embarcadero, San Francisco, United States