The National Network envisions a prosecutor’s office that breaks the traditional mold and establishes itself as not only an important partner to other criminal justice agencies but an independent and effective strategic actor in reducing crime, enhancing the legitimacy of the criminal justice system, strengthening the capacity of communities to prevent and reduce crime, and reducing the unintended consequences of existing criminal justice practices. Such a prosecutor’s office would include the following core elements:
The National Network has typically designed the law enforcement component of its violence intervention strategies through partnership with police departments. However, it is entirely possible to imagine a prosecutor’s office organized to conduct its work consistent with violence reduction goals. This paper outlines a basic direction and design for a fundamental reconception of the function and office of the prosecutor.
"Efforts to roll back mass incarceration are laudable, but they will not achieve lasting change if they do not figure out how to incorporate the perspectives of the justice system’s most vulnerable constituents: Victims of crime."
Slate reviews a New York Times story that detailed a significant discrepancies in the way certain judges and prosecutors hand out punishments. 
NOEL CELIS/AFP/Getty Images
" Some advice from communities that really are facing violent crime."
"Boulder is one of many places around the country turning to restorative justice as an alternative to prosecution and possible imprisonment. Instead of fighting the charges in court, offenders selected for restorative justice agree to accept responsibility for their actions, meet face-to-face with victims and come up with a plan to repair the harm they’ve caused."
"The Prisoner Reentry Institute of John Jay College, with support from the Laura and John Arnold Foundation, recently released two reports on national roundtables convened to explore pretrial practice, the “front door” to the criminal justice system."
"A relatively new restorative justice program is giving young offenders in Milwaukee the chance to avoid the court system and the criminal record that comes with it."
"On July 13, 2015, President Obama commuted the prison sentences of 46 nonviolent drug offenders. Here’s what their lives are like now."
A San Francisco public defender makes the case that mass incarceration cannot be addressed uless we address issues of mental health.
Washington, D.C. is making our justice system fairer by demonstrating effective alternatives to money bail. 
Katherine Frey/The Washington Post
The Family Intervention and Restorative Services (FIRS) program was launched last week in part by King County DA Dan Satterberg. "Its aim is to keep young people out of the criminal-justice system and give them a chance to participate in anger-management and other services designed to nip problem behaviors in the bud."
