LCJPS Legislative Summit Agenda

7:30 a.m.-1 p.m.

Preconference Programs and NCSL Task Force Meetings

Law, Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee
 

“Diving the ‘Dark Web’ to Prevent Crime”  (CLE)

A portion of the online world known as the “dark web” allows criminal enterprise, including terror groups, to use hidden networks to digitally plan and carry out criminal acts. Learn about intergovernmental strategies to help state and local law enforcement investigate and prevent these crimes.
 

Presiding: 

• Senator W. Briggs Hopson, Mississippi
• Senator Delores Kelley, Maryland

Speakers: 

• Representative Chad Magendanz, Washington
• Jason A. Thomas, Chief, Innovation, Thomson Reuters Special Services, Virginia

Law, Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee
(Joint with the Communications, Financial Services and Interstate Commerce Committee)

“Police-Worn Body Cameras: Data and Privacy”  (CLE)

Police-worn body cameras are becoming common law enforcement equipment, and now states and localities face the challenge of managing voluminous video and audio data the cameras produce. Explore protocols for camera use, how data is handled, stored and shared, and the state policies beginning to address these matters.

Moderators: 

• Senator Thomas Alexander, South Carolina
• Representative Roger Goodman, Washington

Speakers:

• Cynthia Lum, Ph.D., Director, Center for Evidence-Based Crime Policy, George Mason University, Virginia
• Senator Gerald Malloy, South Carolina
• Chief Jeffrey Swoboda, City of Elgin Police Department, Illinois

Law, Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee

Committee Business Meeting

Discussion and renewal of several policies.

Presiding: 

• Senator W. Briggs Hopson, Mississippi
• Senator Delores Kelley, Maryland

IMPORTANT NOTICE:  The committee business meetings are paperless this year.  Policy directives and resolutions are accessible in electronic format on the NCSL app and on the agenda and resources page on the Summit website.  All meeting rooms have wireless internet access.  (Link to LCJPS Committee Member List.)

Law, Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee
(Joint with the Legal Services Staff Section, Legislative Research Librarians and Research and Committee Staff Section)

“Supreme Court Roundup”  (CLE)

Many cases with implications for states came before the U.S. Supreme Court this term, including immigration, redistricting, affirmative action, abortion and the death penalty. Learn about these cases and how the Court’s ruling will impact your state.

Moderator: 

• Senator W. Briggs Hopson, Mississippi

Speaker: 

• Lisa Soronen, Chief Counsel and Executive Director, State & Local Legal Center, Washington, D.C.

Law, Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee
 

Sponsored Luncheon: Safety and Justice Challenge, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, Chicago, Ill.

The Safety and Justice Challenge is an initiative to address the way America uses local jails, and to demonstrate in selected jurisdictions approaches to make more effective, fair use of jail, the front door of incarceration.
 

Moderator: 

• Senator Delores Kelley, Maryland

Speaker: 

• Julia Stasch, President, John D. Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, Illinois

Law, Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee
(Joint with the Legal Services Staff Section and Research and Committee Staff Section)

“What Does the Supreme Court Vacancy Mean to State and Local Governments?”  (CLE)

The Supreme Court vacancy created by the death of Justice Antonin Scalia faces intense scrutiny, especially in an election year. Examine what the President’s nominee will mean for the Court’s direction and for state and local governments.

Moderator: 

• Senator W. Briggs Hopson, Mississippi

Speakers:

• Carolyn Shapiro, Esq., Solicitor General for the State of Illinois, Office of the Illinois Attorney General, Illinois
• Lisa Soronen, Chief Counsel and Executive Director, State & Local Legal Center, Washington, D.C.

Law, Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee
 

“Second Chances: Public and Private Approaches to Offender Reentry”  (CLE)

Nearly 11.5 million people cycle in and out of prison and jail each year. Explore steps lawmakers, executive agencies and the business community are taking to overcome the barriers to employment offenders’ face, and to expand second-chance opportunities.

Moderator: 

• J.J. Gentry, Staff Attorney, South Carolina General Assembly

Speakers: 

• Daryl V. Atkinson, Second Chance Fellow, U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Bureau of Justice Assistance, Washington, D.C.
• Jenny Kim, Deputy General Counsel, Political Law and Public Policy, Koch Companies Public Sector, LLC, Washington, D.C.
• Senator Catherine E. Pugh, Maryland
• Senator Craig Tieszen, South Dakota

Other, Related Sessions:  

Issue Session

“Capital Punishment in the 21^st Century”  (CLE)

Executions in the U.S. are at a 20-year low, yet the capital punishment debate is intensifying in state capitols. States must comply with court rulings, while also addressing sentencing and appeals, confidentiality, and methods of execution. Examine important Supreme Court rulings on death penalty, along with state actions that are shaping capital punishment.
 

Moderator: 

• Representative Renny Cushing, New Hampshire

Speakers: 

• Senator Colby Coash, Nebraska
• Senator Kwame Raoul, Illinois
• Lisa Soronen, Chief Counsel and Executive Director, State & Local Legal Center, Washington, D.C.
• Senator Cam Ward, Alabama

Deep Dive Session
“Reaching Across the Aisle on Juvenile Justice”  (CLE)

There is growing recognition by both Republicans and Democrats about what makes juvenile justice systems more effective at reducing juvenile crime. With a focus on evidence-based programs that effectively treat and rehabilitate young offenders, lawmakers in a number of states are working together to strengthen juvenile justice. Explore how legislatures, agencies and the courts are reducing juvenile confinement through early intervention, holding young offenders accountable and investing in improved community supervision.

Featured Speaker: 

• Patrick McCarthy, President and Chief Executive Officer, Annie E. Casey Foundation, Maryland

Presiding: 

• Senator Deb Peters, South Dakota

Moderator: 

• Tim Storey, NCSL

Panelists: 

• Jake Horowitz, Director - State Policy, The Pew Charitable Trusts, public safety performance project, Washington, D.C.
• Judge Patricia Koch, Ninth Judicial District Court, Louisiana
• Benet Magnuson, Executive Director, Kansas Appleseed, Kansas
• Xavier McElrath-Bey, Campaign For the Fair Sentencing of Youth, Illinois
• Terry Smith, Executive Director, Dallas County Juvenile Services, Texas
• Senator Whitney H. Westerfield, Kentucky

Other, Related Sessions

Deep Dive Session

“Rx for America’s Opioid Addiction”

The nation is battling a lethal epidemic that kills more people each year than traffic crashes. More than 120 Americans die each day from drug overdoses, with the majority caused by abuse of opioid prescription drugs and heroin. State resources are increasingly strained by rising foster care caseloads and crowded emergency rooms and jails.  

Moderator: 

• Bruce Feustel, Colorado

Speakers:

• Robert Morrison, Executive Director/Director of Legislative Affairs, National Association of State Alcohol & Drug Abuse Directors, Washington, D.C.
• Dr. Jennifer Plumb, MD, MPH, University of Utah Health Care, Utah
• Representative Ann D. Pugh, Vermont
• Judge Mark Spitzer, Grant County Circuit Court, Indiana
• Nancy Young, Director, Children and Family Futures, California

Panelists:

• Representative Eric K. Hutchings, Utah
• Representative Joni L. Jenkins, Kentucky
• Representative Lou I. Lang, Illinois
• Representative John Nygren, Wisconsin