(Originally published in Stanford Lawyer Magazine on September 25, 2019)

Joan Petersilia was an empirical researcher who pointed to clear-eyed data rather than emotions in a field often dominated by public fear and sentiment.

“I have always considered myself an applied criminologist, and I believe that research is valuable only if it ultimately affects policy and practice. I have tried to produce a body of research worthy of policy attention, and then searched for ways to position myself ‘front and center’ in policy circles, where I could interject my findings to influence policy directions,” Petersilia wrote in Influencing public policy: an embedded criminologist reflects on California prison reform for the Academy of Experimental Criminology’s 2007 Joan McCord Prize Lecture.

And that she did—and so much more. Over the course of a career spanning 40 years she not only published a wealth of groundbreaking research but also gained the trust of policymakers who eagerly sought her help in solving some of the toughest challenges facing America’s bloated and complicated criminal justice system. She was on speed-dial for two California governors and countless state, county, and city officials –advising on the implementation of California’s innovative “realignment” program to alleviate the state’s extreme prison overcrowding, seeking ways to end the revolving door back to prison, and more. Her work was ultimately recognized in 2014 when she received the Stockholm Prize in Criminology, the Nobel Prize of the field.

(Continue reading the article on Stanford Lawyer Magazine’s page here.)