PJI Staff

Pretrial Justice Institute staff can be reached by email or by phone at (202) 638-3080.

Timothy J. Murray, Executive Director
Cherise Fanno Burdeen, Chief Operating Officer
John Clark, Senior Project Associate

Amy DeVries, Chief Financial Officer

Stephanie Garbo, Project Manager
Tracy Loynachan, Consultant

India Ochs, Senior Project Associate, JDAI Help Desk

Stuart Cameron, Volunteer

Lindsey Carlson, Legal Intern

Spotlight on PJI Alumni

Timothy J. Murray is the executive director of PJI. He has worked as a criminal justice practitioner at the local, state and federal levels. His extensive pretrial services experience includes management and executive positions with the pretrial services systems in Washington, D.C., and Miami-Dade County, Fla. While in Miami, he was the principal architect and administrator of the nation’s first drug court. He went on to serve with the U.S. Department of Justice as first director of the Drug Court Program Office.

Following that appointment, he held the positions of director of policy and planning and director of program development at the Bureau of Justice Assistance. He completed his federal service as part of the start-up team for the Transportation Security Administration, now part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. He was selected as PJI’s Executive Director in 2006. He has provided technical assistance to numerous programs and organizations, nationally and internationally. He is a lifetime member of the National Association of Pretrial Services Agencies and is the proud recipient of the Association’s most prestigious honor, the Ennis J. Olgiati Award. E-mail him at tim@pretrial.org.

 

Cherise Fanno Burdeen serves as the chief operating officer of the Pretrial Justice Institute. Ms. Burdeen earned her Masters in Criminal Justice from Indiana University and began her career with the National Institute of Justice. After federal service that included time with the Department of Homeland Security, Ms. Burdeen joined PJI. Since March of 2006, Ms. Burdeen has conducted personnel management, grant and contract management, oversight of accounting and finance, funding strategy development and negotiation, as well as provided substantive expertise on pretrial justice projects. She manages several large projects awarded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance in addition to managing the day-to-day operations of the organization.  Her projects include a cooperative agreement with the National Institute of Corrections on Evidence-Based Decision Making in Local Criminal Justice Systems, A Scan of Pretrial Justice Practices in America, Guide for County Officials on Pretrial Justice and Jail Management, and the redesign of the State Court Processing Statistics Program.  She is a NAPSA certified pretrial services professional. Email her at cherise@pretrial.org.

 

John Clark serves as senior project associate for PJI. He has worked closely with officials in many jurisdictions to gain support for pretrial reforms and implement recommended changes. He has extensive experience in conducting system assessments, gathering and analyzing data, and presenting findings both orally and in writing. His expertise includes identifying causes of jail crowding, developing pretrial risk assessment instruments, identifying alternatives to detention, program development and drug testing. He is the editor of The Pretrial Reporter. Prior to joining the Pretrial Justice Institute, he worked at the D.C. Pretrial Services Agency for eight years as an interviewer, supervision officer and unit supervisor. He is a NAPSA certified pretrial services professional. He is a lifetime member of the National Association of Pretrial Services Agencies and is the proud recipient of the Association’s most prestigious honor, the Ennis J. Olgiati Award. Email him at john@pretrial.org.

 

 

 

 

Amy DeVries, chief financial officer, started at PJI in early 2007. She received her Bachelor’s of Science in Accounting from George Mason University and passed the Certified Public Accountant exam on her first attempt in 1999. After a period as a not-for-profit auditor, she worked in the Hi-Tech industry before moving back into the not-for-profit sector as the Financial Manager for The JFA Institute in Washington, DC. She joins PJI with over ten years of experience working in management, contract revenue, government grants and financial reporting both internal and external. Email her at amy@pretrial.org. 

 

 

 

 

 

Stephanie Garbo, project manager, began working for the Pretrial Justice Institute in January 2008. She received her Bachelor of Arts in psychology and justice studies and Master of Arts in justice studies from the University of New Hampshire. While attending UNH she worked as a graduate intern for the New Hampshire Youth Development Center, concentrating on the NH implementation of the JDAI program. She was an adjunct instructor of psychology at Westwood College. At PJI Stephanie is involved with multiple projects including: the State Court Processing Statistics project (SCPS), the national Survey of Pretrial Programs, the Scan of Pretrial Practice, and serves on the team for the NAPSA Service Director. She is a member of the Alpha Phi Sigma National Criminal Justice Honor Society and is a NAPSA certified pretrial services professional. Email her at stephanie@pretrial.org.

 

 

Tracy Loynachan has worked with the Pretrial Justice Institute since April 2007, and currently serves as a project consultant.  Previously, Ms. Loynachan was a Project Associate at the Pretrial Justice Institute and, in that capacity, assisted with the SCPS 2006 cycle through its completion as a consultant to the organization.  She also provides consulting services to PJI on projects analyzing jail data and in the development of risk assessment schemes. 

Ms. Loynachan has served as a research assistant for the Michigan Supreme Court, State Court Administrative Offices and as a research intern for the Iowa Department of Public Safety. Ms. Loynachan has an M.S. in Criminal Justice from Michigan State University and has experience with large-scale data collection projects, including formatting and analyzing data in SPSS.  In addition to acting as a consultant for PJI, Ms. Loynachan also serves as a Research and Policy Analyst for the American Bar Association, Legal Services Division. Email her at tracy@pretrial.org.

India Ochs, senior project associate, staffs the JDAI Help Desk. Prior to joining the Pretrial Justice Institute, India was the legal officer for the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Center for Human Rights, the program director of Common Senses, Inc. (under AmeriCorps VISTA), and intern for Representative Stephen Lynch (MA--9th District). India has a deep interest in juvenile issues. For two years India was a guardian ad litem representing children in foster care, delivering written court reports and direct testimony based on research, interviews, case review meetings and negotiations. India has over twenty years of experience in public speaking and youth issues, including extensive work in organizing, facilitating and participating in youth leadership workshops and conferences. India has a J.D. with a certificate in family law and social policy from Syracuse University, and a masters in public affairs with a certificate in non-profit management from UNC-Greensboro. She is also a member of the Coast Guard Auxiliary and the President-Elect of the United States Society for Augmentative and Alternative Communication. Email her at india@pretrial.org.