BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Gil Kerlikowske, Board Chairman, Chief of Police, Seattle, WA
Edward A. Flynn, Police Commissioner, Springfield, MA
Gilbert G. Gallegos, Retired Chief of Police, Albuquerque, NM
Janice Grieshaber, Executive Director, the Jenna Foundation for Non-Violence
Ellen Halbert, Director, Victim Witness Assistance Division, Austin (TX) District Attorney's Office
Patrick V. Murphy, Former Police Commissioner New York City, Washington, DC, Syracuse, Detroit
Mark Westrum, Sheriff, Sagadahoc County, ME
Sanford A. Newman, Founder, Fight Crime: Invest in Kids
EXECUTIVE STAFF
David S. Kass, President
Amy R. Dawson, Vice President
Jeff Kirsch, Vice President
Miriam A. Rollin, Vice President
Gil Kerlikowske, Board Chairman,
Chief of Police, Seattle, WA
Prior to his appointment as Chief of the Seattle Police Department, Gil Kerlikowske was
the Deputy Director of the Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) at the US Department
of Justice beginning in 1998. He served as Police Commissioner in Buffalo, New York from 1994 to
1998 and Chief of Police in Fort Pierce, Florida from 1990 to 1994.
Chief Kerlikowske is a national leader in law enforcement and criminal justice. From 1996
to 1998, he served as the President of the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF), whose
members include police chiefs, sheriffs, and other law enforcement executives from police
jurisdictions serving more than 100 million Americans. He was the 1990 recipient of the
Gary Hayes national memorial award for innovation in policing presented by PERF. In 1985,
he received a one-year fellowship from the US Department of Justice to evaluate police
procedures throughout the country.
Chief Kerlikowske began his law enforcement career with the St. Petersburg, Florida Police
Department in 1972. During his tenure, he served as the commanding officer of several
divisions, including Narcotics, Criminal Investigation, and Internal Affairs. He holds a
B.A. and M.A. in criminal justice from the University of South Florida in Tampa and is a
graduate of the National Executive Institute at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia.
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Edward A. Flynn, Police
Commissioner, Springfield, MA
Prior to his appointment as Springfield Police Commissioner, Ed
Flynn was appointed Massachusetts Secretary of Public Safety by Governor Mitt Romney. In
this cabinet-level position, Flynn oversaw 21 state agencies including the Massachusetts
State Police and the Massachusetts National Guard. Flynn previously served as a Chief of
Police of Arlington County (VA), where he reorganized the police department to facilitate
the adoption of a community-based problem-oriented policing strategy. His early career
was spent in the Jersey City Police Department where he was promoted from patrol officer
through the ranks of sergeant, lieutenant, captain and inspector. He has served as the
Chief of Police in Braintree, Massachusetts where he was credited with modernizing the
department, and in Chelsea, Massachusetts, where he helped lead the city out of
state-imposed receivership to its designation as an "All American City." In 2003,
Chief Flynn received the Fight Crime: Invest in Kids' Champions for Children Award.
Chief Flynn is a member of the board of directors for the Police Executive Research Forum
and is a recipient of the prestigious Gary Hayes Memorial Award for Police Leadership. He
holds an M.A. in Criminal Justice from the City University of New York. Chief Flynn is a
graduate of the FBI National Academy, the National Executive Institute and was a National
Institute of Justice Pickett Fellow at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government.
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Gilbert G. Gallegos,
Retired Chief of Police, Albuquerque, NM
Prior to his appointment as Chief of the Albuquerque Police
Department, Gil Gallegos was the National President of the Fraternal Order of Police,
which - with over 290,000 members - is the largest law enforcement labor organization in
the United States. He previously spent 25 years at the Albuquerque Police Department,
retiring when he was a deputy chief of police. He then served as a Drug Enforcement
Coordinator with the New Mexico Department of Public Safety, coordinating the drug
enforcement efforts of a multi-agency task force including federal, state, and local
agencies. In 1997, Chief Gallegos received a congressional appointment as a Commissioner
to the Commission for Advancement of Federal Law.
Chief Gallegos serves on the boards of the New Mexico Council on Crime and Delinquency,
the Governor's Drug Enforcement Advisory Council, the National Center for Missing and
Exploited Children, the Center for Criminal Justice Studies, and the National Law
Enforcement Credentialing Board, and is a member of the Latino Police Officers Association,
the Chicano Police Officers Association, and the Fraternal Order of Police. He holds a
B.S. in Criminology from the University of Albuquerque, and is a graduate of the Southern
Police Institute Administrative Course, University of Louisville, and the FBI National
Academy.
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Janice Grieshaber, Executive Director,
the Jenna Foundation for Non-Violence
Janice Grieshaber’s involvement in criminal justice began in 1997 when her daughter, Jenna, was murdered. Subsequently, in an historic effort, the Grieshaber family pushed for and saw passage of “Jenna’s Law,” legislation which enacted the Victim Information and Notification Everyday (VINE) program, implemented determinate sentencing, and increased post-release supervision. Establishment of The Jenna Foundation for Non-Violence, headquartered in Syracuse, NY, immediately followed.
Grieshaber has been a member of Fight Crime: Invest in Kids since 1999. Widely regarded for her community and crime-prevention work, she is the recipient of the Jefferson Award, the Syracuse Post-Standard Achievement Award, the Women in Business Award, and was designated a “Woman of Distinction” in the 50th District of the New York State Senate. In 2005, Grieshaber was recognized by Fight Crime: Invest in Kids with the Champion for Children Award.
Grieshaber holds a degree in merchandising from Cazenovia College, and is a magna cum laude graduate of LaMoyne college. She serves on numerous crime and victims’ advisory boards and committees, and is a co-chair of the Fight Crime: Invest in Kids New York office.
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Ellen Halbert, Director,
Victim Witness Assistance Division, Austin (TX) District Attorney's Office
Ellen Halbert's involvement in criminal justice began after a brutal attack she suffered
in 1986, when an intruder broke into her home and repeatedly raped her, stabbed her three
times in the neck and chest and hit her ten times with a hammer before hammering a knife
into her skull and leaving her for dead.
In 1991, Halbert became the first crime victim to be appointed to the Texas Board of
Criminal Justice, which oversees the massive Texas Criminal Justice System of prisons,
parole supervision, and probation. In 1997, after serving as the Board's Vice Chair for
four years, Halbert received the prestigious Crime Victims' Service Award from the US
Justice Department's Office of Victims of Crime, the highest federal honor for a crime
victim or victims' advocate. She is editor of The Crime Victims' Report, a journal for
criminal justice professionals, and a founding Advisor of Fight Crime: Invest in Kids.
In 2003, Ellen received the Fight Crime: Invest in Kids' Champions for Children Award.
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Patrick V. Murphy, Former
Police Commissioner New York City, Washington, DC, Syracuse, Detroit
In more than 51 years in law enforcement, Patrick Murphy has
served as the Police Commissioner of New York City; Washington, DC; Syracuse; and
Detroit - more major cities than anyone else in U.S. history. In between, he headed the
federal government's Law Enforcement Assistance Administration.
Murphy later headed the Police Foundation for 12 years, producing seminal research on
effective policing. When Murphy retired from the Police Foundation, the FBI Law
Enforcement Bulletin noted that his "long-range impact on American policing nationally
probably will be judged by students of police history as significant as that of J. Edgar
Hoover." He is currently the Director of the Police Policy Board of the U.S. Conference
of Mayors and Chair of the Montgomery County, Maryland Criminal Justice Coordinating
Commission. He holds a Masters Degree in Public Administration and graduated from the
FBI National Academy.
Murphy is widely considered to be the "father of community policing," and has written
numerous articles on policing as well as teaching at the John Jay College of Criminal
Justice. His emphasis on hard-nosed research to learn what works and his commitment to
implementing research findings have won international acclaim, including a special award
from the Queen of England for his service in assisting Scotland Yard.
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Mark Westrum, Sheriff,
Sagadahoc County, ME
A Maine native, Mark Westrum has served in local law enforcement
for more than 25 years, beginning his career with the Bath Police Department in 1979 as a
Police Cadet and Reserve Officer. He served the Topsham Police Department as a Juvenile
Officer and Sergeant before moving to the Sagadahoc County Sheriff's office in 1988. Prior
to being elected Sheriff in 1992, he served as detective, then chief deputy.
In addition to his local work, Sheriff Westrum is well-respected by, and connected to,
law enforcement leaders and organizations on both the state and national levels. He is
past President of both the Maine Sheriffs' Association and the Maine Crime Prevention
Association.
Throughout his career, he has sought to proactively reduce crime, and brings with him the
unique perspective that comes with having been raised by a single mother in a Bath, Maine
housing project. He speaks candidly about the importance of positive mentors in his own
life, and understands first-hand the challenges kids face as they grow into adults.
Sheriff Westrum has been appointed by the Governor of Maine to sit on the boards of the
Maine Domestic Abuse Commission, the Intergovernmental Task Force, and the Maine Criminal
Justice Commission. In addition, he is an appointee to the National Sheriffs' Association's
Youth/Crime Prevention Committee. He is a member of the board of directors of the Maine
Chiefs of Police Association, the New England Association of Chiefs of Police, and the New
England Community Policing Institute, and is also past Chair of the Maine Community
Policing Institute. He holds a degree in Law Enforcement Technology from Southern Maine
Technical College, and is a graduate of the Maine Criminal Justice Academy; the Federal
Law Enforcement Training Academy in Glynco, Georgia; the Institute of Police and Technology
Management at the University of North Florida; and the National Crime Prevention
Institute at the University of Louisville.
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Sanford A. Newman, Founder,
Fight Crime: Invest in Kids
Sanford Newman is an attorney and founder of Fight Crime:
Invest In Kids. Newman's interest in fighting and
preventing crime began in 1983 when he and his wife were awakened by an intruder crouching
between their bed and their newborn daughter's crib. He has since become one of the
nation's leading experts on what works to prevent crime and violence. Together with former
Attorney General Elliot Richardson and other law enforcement leaders, Newman founded Fight
Crime: Invest in Kids in 1996, and served as its full-time CEO until 2004. Newman has
authored or co-authored numerous reports on the crime prevention impact of gang prevention,
bullying prevention, after-school programs, child abuse prevention and early childhood
care and education.
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David Kass, President
David serves as the President of Fight Crime: Invest In Kids and
directs their overall operations. Previously, David served as Deputy Assistant Secretary
for Legislation at the U.S. Department of Housing, managing the agency's Congressional
affairs office.He also worked on crime and children's issues as a staff person on Capitol
Hill and for several nonprofits. David received his master's degree from Princeton
University's Woodrow Wilson School of Public Affairs and his bachelor's degree from Amherst
College.
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Amy R. Dawson, Vice President
Amy Dawson helped to establish the anti-crime organization Fight
Crime: Invest in Kids in 1995. Amy directs Fight Crime's operations in states that
are staffed by the national office, and acts as primary liaison with the organization's
Board of Directors as well as with national law enforcement associations, violence victims'
organizations, and intergovernmental associations. She is also responsible for overseeing
the organization's finances, administration, and human resources. Prior to starting Fight
Crime: Invest in Kids,
she helped coordinate a tutoring and mentoring program for low-income, Spanish-speaking
youth in East Palo Alto, CA, and conducted research on issues affecting Native Americans.
Amy graduated with honors from the University of California at Irvine.
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Jeff Kirsch, Vice President
Jeff joined our staff in February 2003, bringing with him over 30 years of
organizing and advocacy experience. Jeff oversees our staffed state
operations (California, Illinois, Maine, Michigan, New York, Ohio, Oregon,
Pennsylvania, and Tennessee), and has other internal management responsibilities.
Previously Jeff served for twenty years as field director and deputy
executive director at Families USA, the national consumer health
organization, where he managed the organization's education and mobilization
activities with grassroots organizations and coalitions around the country
as well as the electronic communications and Web site. Jeff also worked for
seven years at the food and hunger policy group, Food Research and Action
Center (FRAC), serving as a field organizer, a lobbyist on Capitol Hill, and
ultimately as director. Jeff received his bachelor's degree from the
University of Virginia.
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Miriam A. Rollin, Vice President
Miriam joined our staff in April 2001 to increase our policy-maker education capacity,
bringing two decades of experience as an advocate for children, youth and families. She
held leadership roles at the National Association of Child Advocates, the National Network
for Youth, the National PTA, and other education advocacy groups. As a lawyer, Miriam
practiced both as an attorney for abused and neglected children and as an Assistant
District Attorney, prosecuting juvenile, family violence, and child abuse cases. She
serves on the Board of the National Association of Counsel for Children, and is a recipient
of the Youth Law Center's "Unsung Hero Award." Miriam earned a bachelor's degree in
economics and political science from Yale University and a law degree from Catholic
University in Washington, DC.
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