In this special episode of Justice Today, BJA Director Karhlton F. Moore is marking a significant milestone in the world of justice and public safety—the 40th anniversary of the Bureau of Justice Assistance.

Law enforcement agencies are teaming up with mental health clinicians to improve behavioral health responses and allow police officers to focus on crime reduction. In this episode of Justice Today, our host discusses how Denver police work side-by-side with mental health clinicians to treat residents experiencing mental health emergencies and connect them with treatment.

Every day, Joe Platania and his office make complex judgment calls that help decide whether people will spend years or even decades behind bars. During this episode, Platania explains how this process of “prosecutorial discretion” works.

During this episode, hear how Navajo County, Arizona, county prosecutor Bradley Carlyon is working to help residents on the road to recovery from the moment they enter the county jail.

During this episode, hear how National Sexual Assault Kit Initiative funding helped the state of Georgia process a backlog of sexual assault kits, which led to the identification and conviction of a serial rapist.

During this episode, Mayor Jermaine Wilson describes his personal journey from maximum security prison to the highest elected office in his hometown.

Formerly incarcerated people face a web of laws that Marlon Chamberlain describes as "permanent punishments." During this episode, he discusses his campaign to eliminate them.

During this episode, Detective Johnson and Dr. Williamson describe how decades of determined police work and cutting-edge forensic science identified Joe Michael Ervin as the person who assaulted and murdered four women between 1978 and 1981.

Reflecting back on Recovery Month, BJA’s Betsi Griffith discusses BJA’s work in this area and some of the lessons learned from it.

During this episode, David Gibbs explains how he escaped an addiction to alcohol and drugs that began when he was eight years old.