Panel Spotlight: Reimagining the Next Chapter of Youth Justice

Sonnja Brown (she/her) is a Family Support Partner with Child & Family Behavioral Health Services for the City of Alexandria, Virginia, where she uses her lived experience to support families navigating behavioral health and juvenile justice systems. A dedicated Juvenile Justice Advocate, Sonnja believes youth should be defined by their potential rather than their past mistakes. She works to empower caregivers to become active partners in shaping systems that embrace healing, accountability, and opportunity instead of punishment.

Inspired by helping her own grandson overcome significant barriers and successfully rebuild his life in the community, Sonnja models resilience, hope, and effective advocacy for families facing similar challenges. She has served on Alexandria’s Family Assessment and Planning Team (FAPT), as a Commissioner for the Northern Virginia Juvenile Detention Center, and as a leader in the Crossover Youth Practice Model. Sonnja is committed to creating lasting systems change that helps justice-involved youth and young adults thrive.

Clinton Lacey is the president and CEO of the Credible Messenger Mentoring Movement (CM3), a newly launched organization focusing on supporting Credible Messenger Mentors – community rooted natural leaders who have successfully navigated their own prior involvement in the justice system, who share similar life experiences with current justice-involved young people, and are poised to have transformative impact on an individual, family, community and systemic level – and maximizing their impact around the nation.

Prior to the recent launch of CM3, Lacey served as Director of the District of Columbia Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services (DYRS), Washington DC’s cabinet-level juvenile justice agency, where he was appointed by Washington, DC Mayor Muriel Bowser in 2015.

​Before joining DYRS, Clinton was appointed to the New York City Department of Probation as the Deputy Commissioner for adult operations in 2011. In this capacity, he was responsible for the oversight of a division that supervised approximately 24,000 clients on probation and led a series of innovative initiatives, including the Neighborhood Opportunity Networks (NeONs) and Arches Transformative Mentoring (the first iteration of Credible Messenger Mentoring).

​Other positions held by Lacey over his 30-year career include project manager with the W. Haywood Burns Institute, addressing racial, ethnic, and gender disparities in several jurisdictions around the nation (2005-2010); director of the Youth Justice Program at Vera Institute of Justice, where he led an initiative to build collaborative relationships between community-based youth advocates and system based juvenile justice officials from various jurisdictions around the nation (2004-2005); and associate executive director of Friends of Island Academy, where developed services for 16 to 24-year-olds at Riker’s Island in New York City (1992 – 2004).

​Clinton is an experienced trainer, facilitator, writer, and keynote speaker on such issues as racial disparity, comprehensive re-entry services, gang/power group intervention strategies, and overall youth development. In addition, he has studied justice systems and provided trainings around the nation, as well as in Puerto Rico, Brazil, Barbados, Norway, and Finland.

​He has a B.A. in Latin American and Caribbean History from Herbert H. Lehman College (City University of New York) and is a graduate of the Institute for Not-for-Profit Management at Columbia University. Clinton is married, and the father of two sons and a daughter and has one granddaughter.

A proud mother of two college students, Nicole P. is often invited to publicly share the story of her family’s community-supported resilience as part of her personal testimony about battling addiction.

Nicole graduated from Steinmetz High School in Chicago and began working at a neighborhood grocery store before getting accepted into a vocational college with her eye on becoming a medical assistant. Before long, she was in a relationship where she was introduced to illegal narcotics. Nicole was in an on-and-off battle with drug and alcohol addiction for a decade, all the while maintaining employment at big box stores and fast-food restaurants.

When Nicole became pregnant in 2006 and 2008, she was drug free. But during the pandemic, she began using again. She credits a neighbor, who looked after her boys, and Youth Advocate Programs (YAP®), Inc. for intervening when they returned to school in 2021. A philanthropy/donor-supported national nonprofit, YAP® provides intensive youth and family wraparound services that give communities an alternative to youth incarceration and residential care and reduce violence. Nicole’s oldest son became involved with YAP® when his guidance counselor referred him to Choose to Change®, a program found by the University of Chicago Crime and Education Labs to reduce violence among youth at the greatest risk. Choose to Change combines YAP®’s evidence-based alternative-to-youth-incarceration/residential care wraparound services with weekly Specialized Psychotherapy for Adolescents Responding to Chronic Stress (SPARCS) therapy delivered by Chicago-based Brightpoint.

Exposed to neighborhood violence and impacted by pressure and “strong emotions” linked to his mother’s addiction, Nicole’s son was eager to be a part of the program.  A YAP® Advocate empowered the then fourteen-year-old with tools to see and nurture his strengths while connecting him and his brother to activities that allowed them to “just be kids.” Meantime, without judgement, the Advocate helped with groceries and other basic family needs and encouraged Nicole to get treatment.

By the next year, Nicole had completed treatment and joined Narcotics Anonymous where, supported by a sponsor, she has remained drug free for nearly four years. She has been promoted to supervisor at the fast-food restaurant where she works and when her general manager is on vacation is often asked to fill in. Nicole continues to be a proud mother with her older son working towards becoming a character designer/illustrator, and her youngest son, entering college in the fall where he will major in engineering.

Theresa Wright is a high-impact leader in youth advocacy whose more than 30-year career has transformed outcomes for some of the nation’s most vulnerable young people. A trusted expert in trauma-informed care and community-based intervention, she has led innovative programs that reduce violence, strengthen families, and create pathways to independence for youth facing complex challenges. Her work with nationally recognized initiatives and evidence-based models has positioned her as a powerful force in advancing effective, compassionate solutions for youth and families.

As a Youth and Family Advocate with Youth Advocate Programs YAP®, Inc., Theresa delivers community-based, trauma-informed services as alternatives to correctional and residential placements. She also supports participants in Choose to Change®, an evidence-based violence intervention developed by YAP® and Brightpoint, recognized by the University of Chicago Crime and Education Lab for reducing violence among high-risk youth.

Theresa serves as a Transitional Living Program Supervisor for UCAN in Chicago and Program Manager for Ibukun Therapeutic Services, overseeing programs that prepare young adults for independent living. Her leadership has improved placement stability, reduced behavioral incidents, and strengthened outcomes for youth transitioning to adulthood.

A dedicated advocate for trauma-informed care, Theresa has extensive experience working with adolescents impacted by violence, abuse, and chronic stress. She is known for building strong relationships, mentoring professionals, and empowering youth to reach their potential.

Her previous roles include Program Support/Staff Coordinator for Aunt Martha’s Youth Service Center and Residential Treatment Specialist and Shift Supervisor with Uhlich Children’s Advantage Network. She holds certifications in Therapeutic Crisis Intervention TCI, Nonviolent Crisis Intervention NCI, and CPR/First Aid.

Theresa brings a blend of lived experience, professional expertise, and compassion to her speaking engagements, inspiring audiences to apply trauma-informed practices and create opportunities for youth and families to thrive.