Sarah Picard’s work focuses on policy-level reform in the adult criminal justice context and how research evidence can best be translated into practice. She is currently engaged in national studies of pretrial responses to intimate partner violence and prosecutor decision-making in cases involving violence. Dr. Picard also has extensive experience studying the use of actuarial risk assessment tools in court settings and has recently completed a study modeling the potential impact of risk assessment on pretrial racial disparities in New York City. Finally, she co-leads the Center’s efforts to reduce jail incarceration and improve pretrial systems through the MacArthur Safety and Justice Challenge and the Advancing Pretrial Policy and Research Initiative. Her past research includes mixed-methods evaluations of problem-solving initiatives ranging from community-based gun violence prevention models to drug and domestic violence courts. She received her Ph.D. in Criminal Justice from the Graduate Center at the City University of New York.
