Clergy take lead on issue of Criminal Justice Reform

Delegation meets with Attorney General's Office

Criminal Justice Reform is taking shape in almost every metropolitan area across the country. The call to action is not going unheard in Trumbull and Mahoning Counties. The action started this past summer when leaders from Warren and Youngstown hosted national expert Rev. Sherrod Gordon in a series of informational revolving around the need for criminal justice reform.

Gordon explained his campaign work that led to comprehensive policy changes in Chicago allowing for expansion of felony expungements. The presentation was received as a call to action by Pastor Alton Merrell of Warren who attended the meeting. Merrel said, “I’m excited. They didn’t just talk about the problem, they changed the laws. We can do it here too. If not us, then who?”

In continuation from the summer, organizers with MVOC and community leaders from Trumbull and Mahoning Counties traveled to Columbus, Ohio to talk to legislators about criminal justice reform efforts on the state level in early December. They participated in legislative visits designed to gather information as well as communicate the need for our elected officials to actively engage in addressing this issue.

Leaders said that they wanted to let the lawmakers know that there is a significant portion of their constituency that is directly affected by the current policies. The group was also able to meet with representatives from the Attorney General’s Office and their committee on Criminal Justice Reform. The community leaders received first hand information on the state’s efforts to address the growing concern as well as offer their own advice and grass roots perspective to the committee.

The representatives from the AG office assured the community leaders of their commitment to turning their ideas to action. The Attorney General’s Office also emphasized the need for strong grassroots and local level activism around the efforts. “No reform can take place without strong support from the community,” stated Luke Blotcher from the Attorney General’s Office.

MVOC and community partners are mobilizing to band together in efforts to ensure that we create some real results in reform efforts on a state and local level. Leaders emphasized that people cannot afford to be silent any longer on an issue that is so pressing in our inner city communities.

If you have any questions about MVOC’s work on Criminal Justice Reform, contact Lea Dotson at (330) 743-1196.

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