Fall Leadership Summit
Sept 29–Oct 1
Fall Leadership Summit
Boston, Massachusetts
Overview
Columbine, Newtown, Las Vegas, Buffalo, Uvalde. For every mass shooting that dominates the headlines and frightens our fellow Americans, there are scores of other gun deaths happening everyday. Intimate partner and family homicide, hate-inspired violence and gang conflict account for a staggering amount of gun deaths in our country but are often overlooked by the media. In this program we partnered with Northeastern University to break through the fear and hyperbole surrounding gun violence to focus on the facts. We brought in highly-regarded experts to provide strategies to increase the safety of your constituents. Policies based on facts, not fear.
Program Objectives:
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Address myths and realities regarding gun violence in America
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Learn effective crisis communication methods to use in the event of a tragedy
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Examine the various types of violence and prevalence of each (mass shootings, school shootings, intimate partner and family homicides and gang violence)
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Learn from national experts so you can base your policies on facts, not fear
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Explore strategies for finding a bipartisan consensus to address public safety issues
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Discuss particular strategies that are most likely to work in your state
Anthony Braga
Anthony A. Braga is the Jerry Lee Professor of Criminology and the Director of the Crime and Justice Policy Lab in the Department of Criminology at the University of Pennsylvania. He collaborates with criminal justice, social service, and community-based organizations to produce high impact scholarship, randomized field experiments, and policy advice on the prevention of crime at problem places, the control of gang violence, and reductions in access to firearms by criminals. With colleagues, Braga has published numerous peer reviewed journal articles in top criminology and criminal justice journals such as Criminology, Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency, Justice Quarterly, and the Journal of Quantitative Criminology; top medical and public health journals such as the Journal of the American Medical Association, New England Journal of Medicine, and the American Journal of Public Health; and top sociology journals such as American Sociological Review, American Journal of Sociology, and the Annual Review of Sociology. Braga has authored four books and edited nine volumes with top scholarly presses such as the National Academies Press, Oxford University Press, and Cambridge University Press.
The practical value of his work in violence reduction in disadvantaged neighborhoods has been recognized by numerous awards, including the Civic Leadership Award (2004) presented by The Boston Foundation, the United States Attorney General’s Award for Outstanding Contributions to Community Partnerships for Public Safety (2009), and the U.S. Department of Justice Project Safe Neighborhoods Research Partner of the Year Award (2010). Between 2007 and 2013, Braga served as Chief Policy Advisor to former Boston Police Commissioner Edward F. Davis and worked with his command staff and line-level officers on award-winning community policing and crime prevention initiatives. Braga holds an M.P.A. from Harvard University, and a Ph.D. in criminal justice from Rutgers University.
Director of the Crime and Justice Policy Lab
University of Pennsylvania
Hon. Robert DeLeo
Robert DeLeo is the former Speaker of the Massachusetts House of Representatives (2009 to 2020) and University Fellow for Public Life across the College of Professional Studies and the Department of Political Science in the College of Social Sciences and Humanities. At the College of Professional Studies, DeLeo will be teaching undergraduate and graduate students about what it takes to get legislation and policy passed. In the College of Social Sciences and Humanities, he’ll also teach and mentor students in the undergraduate and master’s programs of the Political Science Department and the School of Public Policy and Urban Affairs, including the Law and Policy minor. In addition, he will be collaborating with the director of the Kitty & Michael Dukakis Center for Urban and Regional Policy on public programs, such as the Myra Kraft Open Classroom series.
DeLeo brings plenty of experience to the classroom, having served as a state lawmaker for 30 years. He took control of the House during a politically rocky period in 2009. During his tenure, he spearheaded criminal justice reforms and major gun safety legislation, reaching out for advice from two Northeastern faculty members: former Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Justice Roderick Ireland, distinguished professor of criminology and criminal justice; and Jack McDevitt, professor of the practice in criminology and criminal justice, and director of the Institute on Race and Justice.
University Fellow for Public Life
Northeastern University
James Alan Fox
James Alan Fox is The Lipman Family Professor of Criminology, Law and Public Policy at Northeastern University. He has published eighteen books, including Extreme Killing: Understanding Serial and Mass Murder, The Will to Kill: Making Sense of Senseless Murder, and Violence and Security on Campus: From Preschool Through College. He has published widely in academic and popular outlets, and as a member of its Board of Contributors, his opinion column appears regularly in USA TODAY, often focusing on the topic of mass shootings. Also related to his presentation, Professor Fox headed the investigation of Seattle’s Capitol Hill massacre for the Seattle Police Department and served on President Bill Clinton’s advisory committee on school shootings. Finally, he is one of the principals in the Associated Press/USA TODAY/Northeastern University Mass Killing Database initiative.
Professor of Criminology and Public Policy
Northeastern University
Roderick L. Ireland
Roderick L. Ireland began his legal career in 1969 as a Neighborhood Legal Services attorney. In 1971 he founded, along with attorney Wallace Sherwood (who later taught at the SCCJ for 35 years), the Roxbury Defenders Committee, a public defender program that provided free legal services in criminal cases. In 1975 he was appointed the Assistant Secretary and Chief Legal Counsel for the Massachusetts Executive Office of Administration and Finance, and in 1977, the Chair of the Massachusetts Board of Appeals on Motor Vehicle Liability Policies and Bonds. He then served as a judge for 37 years, sitting in the Boston Juvenile Court from 1977 to 1990, the Massachusetts Appeals Court from 1990 to 1997, and the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court from 1997 to 2014. When he was appointed an associate justice of the Supreme Judicial Court in 1997, he became the first African-American to sit on that bench in its over three hundred year history. In 2010 he became the Court’s first African-American chief justice.
Ireland served as an adjunct faculty member in the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice (formerly the College of Criminal Justice) from 1978 to 2014. He also taught at Harvard Law School, Boston University Law School, Northeastern University School of Law, and the University of Massachusetts in Boston. In addition, he has been on the faculty of New York University Law School’s Appellate Judges Seminar since 2001. He is the author of a two volume treatise on Massachusetts Juvenile Law published by Thomson/Reuters in its Massachusetts Practice Series (the first edition was published in 1993 and the second edition in 2006), as well as several law review articles. In 2017, Chief Justice Ireland was asked by the Speaker of the Massachusetts House of Representatives to advise the Legislature on issues related to Criminal Justice Reform.
Distinguished Professor of Criminology and Criminal Justice
Northeastern University
Jack McDevitt
Jack McDevitt is the co-author of three books: Hate Crimes: The Rising Tide of Bigotry and Bloodshed, Hate Crime Revisited: American War on Those Who Are Different (both with Jack Levin) and Victimology (with Judy Sgarzy). He has spoken on hate crime, racial profiling human trafficking and security both nationally and internationally and has testified as an expert witness before the Judiciary Committees of both U.S. Senate and The U.S. House of Representatives and as invited expert at the White House.
In January 2013, McDevitt was appointed by Massachusetts House Speaker Robert DeLeo to lead a special commission on gun violence.
In June of 2020, McDevitt was asked by Northeastern University President Aoun to Chair an Advisory Board on ways to improve the Northeastern University Police Department.
Professor of the Practice in Criminology and Criminal Justice
Northeastern University
Hon. Chris Murphy
Chris Murphy, the junior United States Senator for Connecticut, has dedicated his career to public service as an advocate for Connecticut families.
He is a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee (HELP), the Foreign Relations Committee, and the Democratic Steering and Outreach Committee.
Prior to his election to the U.S. Senate, Murphy served Connecticut’s Fifth Congressional District for three terms in the U.S. House of Representatives. During his time in the House, Murphy worked to improve access to housing for homeless veterans, foster job creation and advocate for affordable healthcare for all Americans.
Before getting elected to Congress, Murphy served for eight years in the Connecticut General Assembly. Senator Murphy grew up in Wethersfield, Connecticut, and attended Williams College in Massachusetts. He graduated from the University of Connecticut School of Law.
He is married to Catherine Holahan, an attorney, and they have two sons.
U.S. Senator
Connecticut
Sarah Peck
Sarah C. Peck is the co-founder and Director of UnitedOnGuns, an initiative of the Public Health Advocacy Institute at Northeastern University School of Law. UnitedOnGuns promotes public health approaches to reduce gun violence while respecting the rights of responsible gun owners.
Ms. Peck and her team researched the role of mayors when responding to a mass shooting. Based on that research, she co-authored the Mass Shooting Protocol & Playbook: A Resource for U.S. Mayors and City Managers, which city officials can use to prepare for, respond to, and help their communities recover from a mass shooting. Ms. Peck is now working with the Center for Homeland Defense and Security to deliver executive education to mayors and governors to help them prepare for mass shootings and other extreme emergencies in their communities.
Ms. Peck has initiated gun violence prevention research in partnership with Northeastern University School of Law. Current research will identify ways the issuance of domestic violence protective orders can be improved to ensure more guns are removed from abusers. Prior research identified racial bias in gun legislation, and recommended ways to improve the implementation of red flag laws. She and her team are also interested in researching ways mayors can reduce suicide and community gun violence using executive communications and convening powers.
Co-Founder & Director
UnitedOnGuns
Kristina Rose
Kristina Rose is the Director of the Office for Victims of Crime (OVC) at the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), where she oversees programs and services that support crime victims and survivors. Ms. Rose was appointed to this position by President Joe Biden, and sworn in on July 12, 2021. At OVC, she oversees nearly $9 billion in grant funding to provide vital compensation and assistance to persons impacted by crime. OVC also invests in new and innovative approaches to improving the criminal justice and community response to crime victimization and raises awareness of crime victim rights.
Prior to her OVC appointment, Ms. Rose was selected to serve on the Department of Defense Independent Review Commission on Sexual Assault in the Military, where she led the Victim Care and Support effort.
Ms. Rose spent nearly 20 years at DOJ serving in numerous roles including as Deputy Director at OVC, as Acting Director and Deputy Director for the National Institute of Justice, and as the Chief of Staff for the Office on Violence Against Women. In 2016, Ms. Rose had the distinct privilege of working at the White House on detail as a Senior Policy Advisor on violence against women in the Office of Vice President Joe Biden. As Senior Policy Advisor, she provided expert advice and guidance on domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking. She also coordinated the White House Task Force to Protect Students from Sexual Assault and wrote a guide for college presidents on developing comprehensive plans to address campus sexual assault. In 2013, Ms. Rose spent 8 months as a victim advocate in the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Washington, D.C., working hands-on with victims of all violent crimes.
She holds an M.S. in criminal justice from Northeastern University and a B.A. in sociology from George Mason University.
Director, Office for Victims of Crime
U.S. Department of Justice
Dr. Michael Siegel
Dr. Michael Siegel is a Visiting Professor in the Department of Public Health and Community Medicine at the Tufts University School of Medicine. He has been a gun violence researcher for the past 10 years. Most of his work has focused on evaluating state firearm laws and their effects on homicide and suicide rates. More recently, he has begun to focus on studying gun culture. He recently conducted two large, national surveys of gun owners to explore their attitudes towards gun policies. He is currently surveying and interviewing gun owners to try to identify common ground that could be the basis for widely supported and effective gun violence prevention legislation.
Visiting Professor, Public Health and Community Medicine
Tufts University
Hon. Thom Tillis
Senator Thom Tillis was first elected to represent North Carolina in 2014 and is currently serving in his second term after being re-elected in 2020.
Senator Tillis is a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Veterans’ Affairs Committee, Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, and Judiciary Committee.
Before serving in the Senate, he was Speaker of the House in the North Carolina General Assembly where he played an instrumental role in enacting job-creating policies and reforming North Carolina’s tax and regulatory codes.
He lives with his wife Susan in Huntersville, North Carolina, and they are the proud parents of two grown children and grandparents to two grand-daughters.
U.S. Senate
North Carolina