As PJI’s Program Director for Local Change Work, Rae oversees the “Willful Flight: Shifting Policy and Culture” project. This innovative initiative provides first-of-its-kind technical assistance to the Boston Municipal Court to develop and evaluate bail criteria based on a ‘willful flight’ rather than a ‘failure to appear’ standard. Rae is passionate about working at PJI because ‘pretrial reform’ is her love language, and PJI is at the forefront of informing, training, and supporting those committed to equity-driven pretrial reform.
Born and raised in the Midwest, Rae was grounded in community values by her parents, who emphasized the importance of helping others and instilled a fervent desire to seek justice. With over twenty-five years of public service experience, Rae has served as a social worker, advocate, educator, mediator, court administrator, and civil and criminal trial attorney. Regardless of the role, she thrives when assisting in the creation, implementation, and evaluation of research-based policies.
Rae holds a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology, and a Master’s Degree in Social Work from the University of Michigan, as well as a Juris Doctor from Marquette University Law School.
Residing in fabulous Las Vegas, Rae spends her free time taking advantage of the world-class food, shopping, gambling, and entertainment the city has to offer.
Rae leads PJI’s Willful Flight project, a first-of-its-kind effort supporting the Boston Municipal Court in shifting bail policy from “failure to appear” to “willful flight.” A lifelong public servant and passionate pretrial reformer, Rae brings 25+ years of experience to the fight for equity-driven justice.