CENTER NEWS AND EVENTS
- The Center participated in a day-long forum hosted by the University of Baltimore Law Review, “Law, Policy, and Maryland’s Cannabis Industry,” on April 12, 2024. Executive Director
Heather Warnken moderated a panel on a new era of cannabis and criminal legal reform, featuring perspectives from the Maryland Office of the Public Defender, Leaders of a Beautiful Struggle, and the Honorable Mark W. Crooks, Circuit Court for Anne Arundel County.
- Executive Director
Heather Warnken
published an Op Ed co-authored by Professor Alex Piquero, the former head of the Bureau of Justice Statistics at the United States Department of Justice, calling on Maryland Gov. Wes Moore to the veto legislation passed by the Maryland General Assembly rolling back Juvenile Justice reforms.
- Executive Director
Heather Warnken
presented a session at the national Community Violence Intervention and Prevention convening hosted by the United States Department of Justice in Chicago, Realizing the Promise of Victim Compensation in the CVI Ecosystem, on April 5, 2024.
- Legal Fellow Flannery Gallager and Executive Director Heather Warnken published an Op Ed uplifting the importance of access to expungement for thousands of Marylanders held back from employment and numerous other opportunities by their criminal records.
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The Center co-hosted a webinar event with the Community Based Public Safety Collective and the Alliance for Safety and Justice, “Understanding the Proposed Changes in Victim Compensation” on March 22, 2024. The Center also submitted a public comment through the Federal Register to help support needed advancements in equity and access to support throughout the country for underserved survivors of crime.
- Executive Director
Heather Warnken
participated in the national Summit to Address Carjackings in Washington DC on January 25, 2023. Convened by the Police Executive Research Forum, the Summit brought together stakeholders and perspectives across law enforcement, community violence intervention, victim services and more to bring attention to the issue, and to discuss and document what can be done.
- The
Task Force to Study Transparency Standards for State’s Attorneys
submitted its final Report to the Maryland General Assembly. Executive Director
Heather Warnken
was appointed by Maryland Gov. Wes Moore to serve on the Task Force in August 2023.
- Executive Director Heather Warnken participated in the National Summit to Advance States’ Criminal Justice Priorities in Atlanta on Dec 5-6, 2023. Warnken joined partners in the Office of the Public Defender and Moore Administration in a delegation convened
- Executive Director
Heather Warnken
testified before the United States Commission on Civil Rights
in a briefing focused on addressing racial and ethnic disparities in violent victimization on Nov. 17, 2023.
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Heather Warnken, executive director,
was named to the Maryland Equitable Justice Collaborative, a historic new initiative to shape a comprehensive plan for addressing the urgent issue of mass incarceration, particularly impacting Black men and other marginalized groups within Maryland's prisons and jails. Launched by the Office of the Attorney General and the Office of the Public Defender, this powerful collaboration also includes the Judge Alexander Williams, Jr. Center for Education, Justice & Ethics at the University of Maryland College Park; the Institute for Restorative Justice and Practices at Bowie State University, and other key leaders and directly impacted voices throughout the state. Warnken will serve on the Executive Committee and co-chair the subcommittee devoted to reforming Law Enforcement Policies and Practices.
- Executive Director
Heather Warnken
was appointed by Maryland Gov. Wes Moore to the
Task Force to Study Transparency Standards for State’s Attorneys
.
- The Center co-hosted an event, “Criminal Legal Reform in the 2024 Maryland Legislative Session: Advocates’ Retreat,” on Oct.
27, 2023.
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Heather Warnken, executive director,
was named to Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown’s Civil Rights Advisory Council and attended the Council’s inaugural meeting Oct. 12, 2023.
- Executive Director
Heather Warnken
presented a webinar for the Community Based Public Safety Collective on Oct. 10, 2023: "Realizing the Promise of Victims Compensation: Helping Community Violence Intervention Meet the Needs of Victims.”
- Executive Director
Heather Warnken
presented at the national Health Alliance for Violence Intervention Conference in Chicago, IL on Sept. 27, 2023. Warnken was a featured speaker in a panel, "Crime Victim Compensation: Recommendations to Help Meet the Needs of Underserved Victims and Advance Legislative Change.”
- The Center and the Maryland Alliance for Justice Reform presented a Sept. 9 conference, "Beyond Confinement: Rethinking Corrections & Rehabilitation in Maryland," at the University of Baltimore School of Law. The conference explored innovative approaches to transforming the current system, aiming to create a more effective, humane and equitable approach to rehabilitation. Read Executive Director Heather Warnken’s Opening Remarks.
- Executive Director
Heather Warnken
presented at the National Center for Victims of Crime Annual Conference in Boston, MA, on Sept. 8, 2023. Warnken gave a presentation on the impact of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Public Safety Partnership Program in improving access to services and supports for underserved victims of crime.
- Executive Director
Heather Warnken
presented at the national Victims of Crime Act Annual Conference in Chicago, IL on Aug. 15, 2023, “Pathways Toward Equity in Grants Administration.”
- Executive Director
Heather Warnken
co-authored an Aug. 14 op-ed in
The Baltimore Sun
with Maryland Legal Aid Bureau’s Somil Trivedi, “Baltimore’s new citation won’t make us safer - but it will make us poorer.”
- The Center and the Maryland Alliance for Justice Reform presented a Sept. 9 conference, "Beyond Confinement: Rethinking Corrections & Rehabilitation in Maryland," at the University of Baltimore School of Law. The conference explored innovative approaches to transforming the current system, aiming to create a more effective, humane and equitable approach to rehabilitation.
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Heather Warnken
, executive director, co-authored a report, Realizing the Promise of Crime Victim Compensation: Recommendations to Help Community Violence Intervention Meet the Needs of Underserved Victims, published in July 2023 by New York University's Marron Institute. Crime Victim Compensation is a federal- and state-level program designed to reimburse victimes for certain out-of-pocket expenses resulting from their victimization. Realizing the Promise recommends reforms to address inequities and improve the effectiveness of Crime Victim Compensation throughout the country.
- Executive Director
Heather Warnken
participated in the national
Safe and Just Communities Summit
in New York City, co-hosted by the National Urban League and John Jay College (CUNY), on May 8-9, 2023. Warnken was a featured speaker in a panel entitled "Fair and Accountable Policing for Safe Communities."
- Executive Director
Heather Warnken
was honored as a Maryland Daily Record Leader in Law at an April 25, 2023, event.
- In April 2023, Executive Director
Heather Warnken
co-authored a report, "
Equity Across a Continuum in Public Safety Grants Administration
." The report was released as part of a sustained effort toward advancing equity and reducing disparities in the criminal justice system led by the National Criminal Justice Association.
- The Center was featured in the Fall 2022 issue of
Baltimore Law
magazine.
-
Heather Warnken
, executive director, was profiled in the
Maryland Bar Journal's
Fall 2022 issue.
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The Center was mentioned in an article in preLaw magazine’s Fall 2022 issue that listed the School of Law as one of the top schools in criminal law.
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The Center's executive director, Heather Warnken , gave a plenary presentation at the National Public Safety Partnership Violence Reduction Summit, hosted by the US Department of Justice in Tulsa, OK, on Tuesday, Dec. 13.
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The Center's executive director, Heather Warnken , presented at the December 6 Center for American Progress 8th Annual Gun Violence Prevention Summit in Washington, D.C., on a panel titled “Increasing Access to Victim Services for Gun Violence Survivors.”
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Heather Warnken , executive director, testified at an Oct. 6 City Council hearing about her report outlining poor treatment of gunshot victims in Baltimore city.
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Heather Warnken , executive director, co-authored the publication, "Racial Equity Framework for Community Violence Intervention," which was released to the public in August 2022.