Update: Kansas Criminal Justice Reform Commission Findings and Recommendations

Update: Kansas Criminal Justice Reform Commission Findings and Recommendations

In 2019, the Kansas Legislature passed House Bill 2290, (codified at KSA 2019 Supp. 21- 6902) establishing the Kansas Criminal Justice Reform Commission. The Legislature tasked the Commission with studying a range of issues affecting the Kansas criminal justice system, including: sentencing guidelines and proportionality, diversion programs, supervision levels and programs, specialty courts, evidence based programming for offenders, and the capacity of corrections facilities to address geriatric, health care and substance abuse issues. The Commission investigated these and other issues authorized by the Legislature, issuing interim and final reports which summarized its findings and made recommendations to the Legislature.

This CLE program will provide an overview of the work done by the Commission, recap key findings, and provide and update on recommendations to the Legislature.

The CLE program will be presented by Jessica G. Domme, Assistant Attorney General, Kansas Attorney General's Office; and John J. Francis, Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and Professor of Law, Washburn University School of Law.

John J. Francis- Professor Francis began his career as a trial attorney at the New York City Legal Aid Society, Criminal Defense Division. He continued his practice as a supervising attorney with the clinical programs at Hofstra University Law School, where he supervised students in the Criminal Justice Clinic and Housing Rights Clinic. Professor Francis came to Washburn in 1999 to join the law faculty and direct its nationally-renowned law clinic. He was Clinic Director for many years.  Professor Francis’s teaching responsibilities include Criminal Law, Criminal Procedure, and Pretrial Advocacy: Criminal.

Professor Francis is admitted to practice in Kansas, New York, the District of Columbia, the United States District Court for the District of Kansas and the Eastern District of New York, and Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation. Professor Francis has guest taught in trial practice programs for various institutions and leads Washburn's pretrial advocacy curriculum. Previously Professor Francis taught in the Washburn Law Clinic and the Pretrial Advocacy: Civil course. He currently serves as Associate Dean for Academic Affairs.

Professor Francis' scholarly interests emerge from his practice and teaching experience. He has written on the intersection of criminal procedure and immigration law, jury selection, tribal court jurisdiction, and law clinic administration. He has held leadership roles in clinical legal education as a long-time administrator of the national Lawclinic Listserv and former member of the Executive Committee for the AALS Section on Clinical Legal Education. He was appointed to be a member of the Kansas Criminal Justice Reform Commission.