On the Issues
From her time on the bench, Karen grew to understand that the status quo isn’t working anymore for families in our community and those in the criminal justice system. She put those beliefs to action as Oakland County Prosecutor, and focused on addressing integrity and fairness in the criminal justice system, and centering community well-being and safety.
Karen has spent the last four years tackling crime that truly matters to the community. She’s taken a holistic approach to addressing gun violence, advocating for community engagement, mental health support, and responsible gun ownership. She’s also focused on developing just and fair prosecution policies that use nuance to prosecute crime, and considers reform after jail time.
Karen has an unwavering commitment to do what’s right, regardless of political or public popularity. She’s seeking re-election to continue to fight for families in her community with this approach.
As Oakland County Prosecutor, Karen will continue to:
- Listen to and protect victims of crimes.
- Uphold services aimed at supporting victims, such as the canine advocacy program to help children testify against abuse and sexual assault.
- Protect our immigrant population and keep families together.
- Uphold the Hate Crimes Unit to address offenses motivated by race, gender, or sexual orientation.
- Continue to advance the Racial Justice Advisory Council aimed at ensuring community members of color, particularly Black community members, are treated fairly by the criminal justice system in Oakland County.
- Address gun violence in a holistic way that goes beyond prosecution and includes advocating for community engagement, mental health support, and responsible gun ownership.
- Uphold the Commission to Address Gun Violence, established in 2022, to meet this goal by employing behavioral threat assessment models.
- Build upon trafficking unit to address human and drug trafficking.
- Target violent crimes and criminals to keep Oakland County streets safer.
- Bring law enforcement together to hear feedback and work together to enact change.
- Push for fair sentencing that fits the crime, taking into account not only the severity of the offense but also the potential for rehabilitation and reintegration into the community after jail time.
- Build upon reentry programs and grow the juvenile task force that focuses on treating children like children, holding them accountable with tools like restorative justice programs.
- Focus on justice system integrity by building upon the Conviction Integrity Unit (CIU) aimed at righting past wrongful convictions and preventing them in the future.
- Uphold the commitment to reduce mass incarceration by addressing low-level, nonviolent offenses with diversion programs.
- Build upon mental health courts and veterans courts to expand treatment options and reduce crime and incarceration.
- Act as an OCHN liaison to address those facing charges who have mental health, substance use, and co-occurring disorders, to provide diversion into treatment programs.