Name: Breakout Session 2
Start: 2026-11-03T13:30:00-0600
End: 2026-11-03T14:30:00-0600

This is the current draft of the schedule for the Racial Justice Conference 2026. Please come back to see it as it develops.

Disclaimer: All speakers are speaking from their own expertise and experiences. Their personal opinions and perspectives do not represent the organization(s) they work for and/or with.

Order a shirt or a hoodie. Proceeds go to scholarships for future events.

Breakout Session 2

Tuesday November 3, 2026 1:30pm - 2:30pm CST

Speakers

Dumaka Shabbazz

Federal Public Defender, Middle District of Tennessee

Dumaka Shabazz is the Federal Public Defender for the Middle District of Tennessee. With the mission to provide the highest level of defense for the indigent accused, he trains attorneys on storytelling, trauma informed advocacy, and client centered representation. An experienced... Read More →

Jackie Wright

Capital and Conflicts Attorney, Arkansas Public Defender Commission

Jackie Wright is a Capital and Conflicts Attorney at the Arkansas Public Defender Commission (APDC), where she has dedicated over a decade of service to death penalty cases as lead counsel. With a strong commitment to the development of public defenders, Jackie has played a pivotal... Read More →

Jerilyn Bell

Georgia Capital Defender, Director, Georgia Public Defender Council

Jerilyn Bell is the Director of the Georgia Capital Defender’s Office in Atlanta, Georgia. She has handled over 25 capital cases while at the Capital Defenders Office. Prior to joining the Capital’s Defenders Office in 2011, she was a public defender for 13 years at the Legal... Read More →

Keisha Hudson

Chief Defender, Defender Association of Philadelphia

Since becoming the Philadelphia Defender Association’s Chief Defender in November 2021, Keisha Hudson has brought both local and national attention to the critical role of public defenders in maintaining and reforming the criminal justice system. Drawing on her extensive experience... Read More →

Lei Young

Supervising Attorney, Disproportionality Unit, Washington State Office of Public Defense

Lei Young is the Supervising Attorney with the Disproportionality Unit at the Washington State Office of Public Defense, where she works to develop strategies and trainings for challenging racial and economic disproportionality in the legal system. Prior to that position, she spent... Read More →

Lori James

Executive Director, National Association for Public Defense

Dr. Lori James, PhD, LCSW-C, is the Executive Director of the National Association for Public Defense (NAPD), representing more than 27,000 public defense professionals nationwide to drive systemic legal reform. With over 30 years of experience spanning criminal legal reform, clinical... Read More →

Mano Raju

Elected Public Defender, San Francisco Public Defender

Mano Raju serves as San Francisco’s elected Public Defender, where he is nationally recognized for advancing excellence in public defense, piloting innovative approaches to public safety, and advocating for a more just legal system. The son of Indian immigrants, his pursuit of justice... Read More →

Patrice Fulcher

Director of Training and Program Development, National Association for Public Defense

Patrice A. Fulcher is a premier legal trainer and veteran litigator with over three decades of experience heavily rooted in capital defense and systemic legal reform. Her extensive courtroom background includes successfully representing indigent clients facing the death penalty as... Read More →

Stan Hickman

Training Supervisor, New York County Defender Services

Stanford Hickman is a criminal defense attorney currently based in New York City. A Howard University School of Law Graduate, he began his career as a staff attorney with the Legal Aid Society in Queens New York, and progressed to a senior trial attorney with New York County Defender... Read More →