The Legal Lens Podcast

196. Kara Gotsch on Ending Mass Incarceration and Advancing Sentencing & Criminal Justice Reform

Episode Summary

Kara Gotsch, Executive Director of The Sentencing Project, joins The Legal Lens for an in-depth discussion on sentencing and criminal justice reform, mass incarceration, and evidence-based policy advocacy. Gotsch shares her journey from faith-driven social justice advocate to a national leader for sentencing reform, emphasizing the importance of “second chances” and the need to recognize that people can change over time. She explains The Sentencing Project's major focus areas—including youth justice, voting rights restoration for people with felony convictions, and proportionate sentencing—and highlights the disturbing rise of life-without-parole sentences and the persistent overuse of prison, especially in marginalized communities.​

Episode Notes

Kara Gotsch, Executive Director of The Sentencing Project, joins The Legal Lens for an in-depth discussion on sentencing and criminal justice reform, mass incarceration, and evidence-based policy advocacy. Gotsch shares her journey from faith-driven social justice advocate to a national leader for sentencing reform, emphasizing the importance of “second chances” and the need to recognize that people can change over time. She explains The Sentencing Project's major focus areas—including youth justice, voting rights restoration for people with felony convictions, and proportionate sentencing—and highlights the disturbing rise of life-without-parole sentences and the persistent overuse of prison, especially in marginalized communities.​

Listeners will gain insights on shifting trends in the U.S. prison population, the perils of returning to tough-on-crime policies, and current legislative battles in Washington, DC. Gotsch examines the lasting harm of criminalizing youth and outlines the evidence supporting alternatives to incarceration, such as restorative justice, community-based investments, and rehabilitation. The episode closes with a message of hope—empowering people with lived justice system experience to lead reform and reminding us all of society’s capacity for redemption and change.

Key Topics Covered: 

• Kara Gotsch’s personal and professional path to criminal justice reform advocacy​
• The Sentencing Project’s mission and 40-year history: youth justice, voting rights, and sentencing reform​
• Research and advocacy addressing life without parole and the global scale of U.S. prison sentences​
• The rising threats from tough-on-crime political agendas, including federal and DC legislation​
• The connection between community investments, rehabilitation, and true public safety​
• The critical role of formerly incarcerated leaders in reform and what hope looks like for the future