Power of the Prosecutor
Join Washington Innocence Project for a community discussion about the role and importance of prosecutors in the criminal justice system.
Washington Innocence Project (WashIP) represents innocent clients across the state of Washington and observes first-hand the impact of prosecutorial decision-making on the just resolution of these cases. With several open county prosecutor races on the ballot this November, WashIP hopes to create a space for and encourage community-led discussions about the importance of this elected office and the role of prosecutorial decision-making in achieving true justice.
WashIP is working with several other community organizations that are equally vested in the impact of the prosecutor in their communities. Some of these organizations include: The Federal Way Black Collective (https://www.fwblackcollective.com/), Civil Survival Project (https://civilsurvival.org/), Witness to Innocence (https://www.witnesstoinnocence.org/), Choose 180 (https://choose180.org/), The If Project (https://www.theifproject.org/), & The ACLU of Washington (https://www.aclu-wa.org/).
This event will include a series of speakers that will also participate in a Q&A panel of pre-received questions. When you register for the event we urge you to submit your questions of the panel. While we are still finalizing the list of participants, current committed participants include:
Michelle Mbekeani is the Senior Legal & Policy Advisor for Justice Reform in the Cook County State's Attorney's Office. Prior to that, Michelle was a Staff Attorney at the Shriver National Center on Poverty Law. There she focused on police reform, voting rights, and criminal justice reform. Last year during the legislative session, Michelle led the lobbying efforts while working in coalition with the Innocence Project, the Northwestern's Center on Wrongful Convictions, and the Illinois Innocence Project. Michelle earned her B.A. from Stony Brook University in German Language and Literature, Political Science, and Middle Eastern Studies. She received her Juris Doctorate from the University of Chicago Law School.
Felicia Hudson started her work in law and advocacy at Highline College where she received her Paralegal degree and served as the Chair of The Student Legislative Action Committee, the Student Task Force, and interned at a Federal Way criminal defense firm and at the Housing Justice Project. She is currently the program coordinator for the Federal Way Black Collective and facilitates their Facebook show Thursday Thoughts as and other community programs. She is leading the charge for the Federal Way Black Collective on upcoming forums around prosecutor and judicial races.
Representative Tarra Simmons is an American politician, lawyer, and civil rights activist for criminal justice reform. In 2011 Simmons was sentenced to 30 months in prison for theft and drug crimes. In 2017, she graduated from Seattle University School of Law with honors. After law school, she was not allowed to sit for the Washington State bar exam due to her status as a former convicted felon, thus she challenged the Washington State Bar Association rules in the Washington State Supreme Court and won with the court unanimously ruling in her favor. She was later sworn in as an attorney in the State of Washington on June 16, 2018. Simmons is the executive director of a nonprofit focused on assisting those that are formerly incarcerated, known as the Civil Survival Project.
Stephan Thomas studied at Seattle University School of Law. In 2010, he worked as a Rule 9 intern at the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office. The next year he became a full-time deputy and went on to spend six years as a trial attorney, doing rotations in “General Felonies, Domestic Violence, and Sexual Assault.” Satterberg eventually promoted Thomas to Director of Community Justice Initiatives for King County Prosecuting Attorney’s office—a role which he kept until 2019. Ultimately, he left the office after he felt like it wasn’t receptive to the changes, he wanted to make. Thomas put in a bid for the 2022 Prosecutor race as the most progressive candidate but recently dropped out due to family matters.
Anita Khandelwal is the director of the King County Department of Public Defense, which annually represents more than 15,000 clients who have been charged with a crime or stand to lose another liberty interest and cannot afford an attorney. Anita was appointed to the position by the County Executive in 2018, managing a department of more than 400 during the many challenges brought on by a global pandemic that profoundly affected the criminal legal system. She has navigated those challenges with a keen eye on the rights of DPD’s clients and the health and safety of both clients and staff and has been a strong voice for ensuring COVID-inspired system changes did not further harm clients. Under Anita’s leadership, the department has also partnered with community-based organizations to reduce the reach of a system that disproportionately harms poor, marginalized, and BIPOC communities: The department played a key role in the passage of a law – first in Seattle and King County and later statewide – that ensures youth can access counsel prior to a custodial interrogation or search; led statewide efforts to fundamentally transform dependency law in the state; successfully argued a case before the State Supreme Court that strengthened the county’s inquest system, and handled countless post-conviction cases, helping to reduce egregiously long sentences.
Sean Goode is a speaker, facilitator, writer, podcast host, executive coach, and nonprofit leader who is driven by his mantra, “possibilities over problems,” which was born out of his lived experience growing up in what was overwhelmingly challenging circumstances. Through his stewardship of the now nationally recognized nonprofit, CHOOSE 180, he has worked to decriminalize youthful behavior and transform the very systems that have historically caused harm to marginalized communities. Prior to leading this 2021 City of Seattle Human Rights award-winning organization he served as a chaplain in juvenile detention, championed gang and group intervention efforts, and worked to provide education and employment opportunities for youth in at-risk communities.
Jeffery Robinson is the founder and CEO of The Who We Are Project, which aims to become one of the central voices in correcting the narrative on our shared history of anti-Black racism in the United States because the current narrative about the impact of racism and white supremacy on America’s social, legal, political, and economic systems is based on a “re-telling” of history that is incomplete, inaccurate, and misleading. Jeffery has four decades of experience working on criminal and racial justice issues. He has tried over 200 criminal cases to verdict and has tried more than a dozen civil cases representing plaintiffs suing corporate and government entities. In 2015, Jeffery left private practice to become of the ACLU National Office’s Deputy Legal Directors and the Director of the ACLU’s Trone Center for Justice and Equality. Jeffery continues to be a nationally recognized trial attorney and respected teacher of trial advocacy. For over ten years, he has been speaking to diverse audiences across the country on the role of race in the criminal justice system and the history of anti-Black racism in the United States.
David Heppard is the executive director of the Freedom Project. He knows first-hand the impacts of mass incarceration after being incarcerated at 16 years old with a de facto life sentence. Due to his juvenile status when he was convicted, and the passage of the 5064 bill, he was released after 24 years of confinement. He now works toward developing partnerships with other community providers whose mission is in alignment with making advancements in criminal justice and prison reform. He is also a Credible Messenger, which is a national initiative of adult men and women from similar backgrounds who equip young people with the tools to heal their lives and provide them with a living example of hope and transformation.
Anthony Powers is an experienced, inclusive, and inspirational leader, helping people to forge positive futures, and organizing people to work towards more equity in the justice system. He founded the American Equity and Justice Group to make data more available and useful, helping decision-makers understand the fairness of policy and sentencing decisions and ultimately improve equity in the justice system. At the young age of 16, Anthony was convicted of murder and sentenced to 77 years in prison without the possibility of parole. With assistance from Seattle Clemency Project pro bono counsel, at 42 years old, Anthony was granted early release in 2019. While incarcerated, he co-founded a successful behavior health program called the Redemption Project and was a facilitator for Roots to Success, a program that worked to lower recidivism. Since his release, Anthony has been very busy contributing to the community. He and Karlton Daniel, co-founder of the Redemption Project, have designed and lead Seattle Clemency Project’s Reentry and Mentoring Program.
Again When you register for the event we urge you to submit questions that you might have, so they can be incorporated into the panel.
Registration is only necessary if you are attending in person. If you are planning to view livestream you can view from this link: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZdznduVJsSKNI5js0efRNg at the start of the program. If you want to send questions please email events@wainnocenceproject.org.
For more information on Washington Innocence Project, please visit https://wainnocenceproject.org.
Town Hall COVID-19 Policy: Town Hall Seattle will continue to require proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 PCR test (taken within 72 hours prior to attendance) upon entry to Town Hall. Masks must be worn at all times. This policy remains in effect through May 31, 2022. For more information visit - https://townhallseattle.org/plan-your-visit/building-policies/
*For extra precaution consider taking an antigen test before arriving at the event.
Join Washington Innocence Project for a community discussion about the role and importance of prosecutors in the criminal justice system.
Washington Innocence Project (WashIP) represents innocent clients across the state of Washington and observes first-hand the impact of prosecutorial decision-making on the just resolution of these cases. With several open county prosecutor races on the ballot this November, WashIP hopes to create a space for and encourage community-led discussions about the importance of this elected office and the role of prosecutorial decision-making in achieving true justice.
WashIP is working with several other community organizations that are equally vested in the impact of the prosecutor in their communities. Some of these organizations include: The Federal Way Black Collective (https://www.fwblackcollective.com/), Civil Survival Project (https://civilsurvival.org/), Witness to Innocence (https://www.witnesstoinnocence.org/), Choose 180 (https://choose180.org/), The If Project (https://www.theifproject.org/), & The ACLU of Washington (https://www.aclu-wa.org/).
This event will include a series of speakers that will also participate in a Q&A panel of pre-received questions. When you register for the event we urge you to submit your questions of the panel. While we are still finalizing the list of participants, current committed participants include:
Michelle Mbekeani is the Senior Legal & Policy Advisor for Justice Reform in the Cook County State's Attorney's Office. Prior to that, Michelle was a Staff Attorney at the Shriver National Center on Poverty Law. There she focused on police reform, voting rights, and criminal justice reform. Last year during the legislative session, Michelle led the lobbying efforts while working in coalition with the Innocence Project, the Northwestern's Center on Wrongful Convictions, and the Illinois Innocence Project. Michelle earned her B.A. from Stony Brook University in German Language and Literature, Political Science, and Middle Eastern Studies. She received her Juris Doctorate from the University of Chicago Law School.
Felicia Hudson started her work in law and advocacy at Highline College where she received her Paralegal degree and served as the Chair of The Student Legislative Action Committee, the Student Task Force, and interned at a Federal Way criminal defense firm and at the Housing Justice Project. She is currently the program coordinator for the Federal Way Black Collective and facilitates their Facebook show Thursday Thoughts as and other community programs. She is leading the charge for the Federal Way Black Collective on upcoming forums around prosecutor and judicial races.
Representative Tarra Simmons is an American politician, lawyer, and civil rights activist for criminal justice reform. In 2011 Simmons was sentenced to 30 months in prison for theft and drug crimes. In 2017, she graduated from Seattle University School of Law with honors. After law school, she was not allowed to sit for the Washington State bar exam due to her status as a former convicted felon, thus she challenged the Washington State Bar Association rules in the Washington State Supreme Court and won with the court unanimously ruling in her favor. She was later sworn in as an attorney in the State of Washington on June 16, 2018. Simmons is the executive director of a nonprofit focused on assisting those that are formerly incarcerated, known as the Civil Survival Project.
Stephan Thomas studied at Seattle University School of Law. In 2010, he worked as a Rule 9 intern at the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office. The next year he became a full-time deputy and went on to spend six years as a trial attorney, doing rotations in “General Felonies, Domestic Violence, and Sexual Assault.” Satterberg eventually promoted Thomas to Director of Community Justice Initiatives for King County Prosecuting Attorney’s office—a role which he kept until 2019. Ultimately, he left the office after he felt like it wasn’t receptive to the changes, he wanted to make. Thomas put in a bid for the 2022 Prosecutor race as the most progressive candidate but recently dropped out due to family matters.
Anita Khandelwal is the director of the King County Department of Public Defense, which annually represents more than 15,000 clients who have been charged with a crime or stand to lose another liberty interest and cannot afford an attorney. Anita was appointed to the position by the County Executive in 2018, managing a department of more than 400 during the many challenges brought on by a global pandemic that profoundly affected the criminal legal system. She has navigated those challenges with a keen eye on the rights of DPD’s clients and the health and safety of both clients and staff and has been a strong voice for ensuring COVID-inspired system changes did not further harm clients. Under Anita’s leadership, the department has also partnered with community-based organizations to reduce the reach of a system that disproportionately harms poor, marginalized, and BIPOC communities: The department played a key role in the passage of a law – first in Seattle and King County and later statewide – that ensures youth can access counsel prior to a custodial interrogation or search; led statewide efforts to fundamentally transform dependency law in the state; successfully argued a case before the State Supreme Court that strengthened the county’s inquest system, and handled countless post-conviction cases, helping to reduce egregiously long sentences.
Sean Goode is a speaker, facilitator, writer, podcast host, executive coach, and nonprofit leader who is driven by his mantra, “possibilities over problems,” which was born out of his lived experience growing up in what was overwhelmingly challenging circumstances. Through his stewardship of the now nationally recognized nonprofit, CHOOSE 180, he has worked to decriminalize youthful behavior and transform the very systems that have historically caused harm to marginalized communities. Prior to leading this 2021 City of Seattle Human Rights award-winning organization he served as a chaplain in juvenile detention, championed gang and group intervention efforts, and worked to provide education and employment opportunities for youth in at-risk communities.
Jeffery Robinson is the founder and CEO of The Who We Are Project, which aims to become one of the central voices in correcting the narrative on our shared history of anti-Black racism in the United States because the current narrative about the impact of racism and white supremacy on America’s social, legal, political, and economic systems is based on a “re-telling” of history that is incomplete, inaccurate, and misleading. Jeffery has four decades of experience working on criminal and racial justice issues. He has tried over 200 criminal cases to verdict and has tried more than a dozen civil cases representing plaintiffs suing corporate and government entities. In 2015, Jeffery left private practice to become of the ACLU National Office’s Deputy Legal Directors and the Director of the ACLU’s Trone Center for Justice and Equality. Jeffery continues to be a nationally recognized trial attorney and respected teacher of trial advocacy. For over ten years, he has been speaking to diverse audiences across the country on the role of race in the criminal justice system and the history of anti-Black racism in the United States.
David Heppard is the executive director of the Freedom Project. He knows first-hand the impacts of mass incarceration after being incarcerated at 16 years old with a de facto life sentence. Due to his juvenile status when he was convicted, and the passage of the 5064 bill, he was released after 24 years of confinement. He now works toward developing partnerships with other community providers whose mission is in alignment with making advancements in criminal justice and prison reform. He is also a Credible Messenger, which is a national initiative of adult men and women from similar backgrounds who equip young people with the tools to heal their lives and provide them with a living example of hope and transformation.
Anthony Powers is an experienced, inclusive, and inspirational leader, helping people to forge positive futures, and organizing people to work towards more equity in the justice system. He founded the American Equity and Justice Group to make data more available and useful, helping decision-makers understand the fairness of policy and sentencing decisions and ultimately improve equity in the justice system. At the young age of 16, Anthony was convicted of murder and sentenced to 77 years in prison without the possibility of parole. With assistance from Seattle Clemency Project pro bono counsel, at 42 years old, Anthony was granted early release in 2019. While incarcerated, he co-founded a successful behavior health program called the Redemption Project and was a facilitator for Roots to Success, a program that worked to lower recidivism. Since his release, Anthony has been very busy contributing to the community. He and Karlton Daniel, co-founder of the Redemption Project, have designed and lead Seattle Clemency Project’s Reentry and Mentoring Program.
Again When you register for the event we urge you to submit questions that you might have, so they can be incorporated into the panel.
Registration is only necessary if you are attending in person. If you are planning to view livestream you can view from this link: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZdznduVJsSKNI5js0efRNg at the start of the program. If you want to send questions please email events@wainnocenceproject.org.
For more information on Washington Innocence Project, please visit https://wainnocenceproject.org.
Town Hall COVID-19 Policy: Town Hall Seattle will continue to require proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 PCR test (taken within 72 hours prior to attendance) upon entry to Town Hall. Masks must be worn at all times. This policy remains in effect through May 31, 2022. For more information visit - https://townhallseattle.org/plan-your-visit/building-policies/
*For extra precaution consider taking an antigen test before arriving at the event.