First Friday Forum: Community-Driven Alternatives to Calling Police

Ira A. Burnim is a magna cum laude graduate of Harvard Law School, who joined the Judge David L. Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law legal staff in 1988 and became the legal director in 1989. Formerly, Burnim served as legal director of the Children’s Defense Fund, senior attorney at the Southern Poverty Law Center, and law clerk to the Hon. Frank M. Johnson, Jr. Burnim is a member of the executive committee of the Disability Rights Bar Association. He is recognized for his expertise in policy and legal issues related to the Americans with Disabilities Act, community mental health care, Medicaid, and children’s issues. He consults with federal agencies, state policy makers, and advocates. Working with Disability Rights International and the Mental Disability Advocacy Center, he has advised advocates and policy makers in Hungary, the Czech Republic, Albania, Romania, Ukraine, Russia, and Japan.

Melissa McKee is a formerly incarcerated member of the City of Olympia’s innovative approach to systems-level change in policing. As a Peer Navigator, Melissa draws upon her personal experience with substance use and mental health challenges, and within the criminal justice system, in serving those currently impacted within her community. 

Additionally, Melissa is in her final year of undergraduate studies at the Evergreen State College. In her scarce free time, Melissa can be found with her three dogs, Harper, Ernie and Odis.

As Executive Director, Larell is the driving force behind Restorative Response Baltimore. With over ten years’ experience at RRB, she is a community conferencing facilitator, restorative justice trainer, and works with staff and volunteers to develop and hone their facilitation skills. Larell has initiated team-building strategies and instituted practices that emphasize a cohesive, caring mindset in the workplace. She facilitates our semi-annual facilitator and refresher trainings, as well as the on-going quarterly skill-building workshops for the statewide facilitator network. Larell also lends support in facilitating restorative practices trainings, outreach efforts, and dialogue circle facilitation.

Tenille Patterson is an Executive Partner with the Pretrial Justice Institute, where in partnership with Meghan Guevara, she leads PJI’s strategic visioning, program implementation and organizational management activities. Tenille has spent over 15 years as a nonprofit executive leader supporting mission critical organizations serving communities subject to systemic disinvestment, injustice and neglect. At PJI, Tenille oversees the finance, human resources, operations, and communications portfolios.    Tenille has a Bachelor of Science degree in accounting from Morgan State University and is a certified public accountant.