Raquel Mariscal, Esq., Board Member

Raquel Mariscal is a Senior Consultant for the Annie E. Casey foundation; co-managing the Juvenile Detention Alternative’s Initiative (JDAI), perhaps the nation’s most ambitious effort to date to demonstrate that jurisdictions can safely reduce reliance on secure juvenile detention. Ms. Mariscal began her formal work in JDAI as the Senior Associate for Juvenile Justice Reform with the Annie E. Casey Foundation.

A member of the California Bar, Ms. Mariscal previously worked as the Executive Director of the Criminal Justice Council of Santa Cruz County, California. Her career includes: administrative analyst for Santa Cruz County fourth district supervisor, providing criminal/juvenile defense services in private practice and ten years working as an attorney in the Public Defender’s office of Santa Cruz County. Throughout her tenure in these positions, Ms. Mariscal continued to advocate for the development of alternatives to incarceration, equitable justice services for all residents of Santa Cruz County, addressing racial and ethnic disparities, and other justice system reforms. A family farm-worker legacy has shaped her values and commitment to social justice. She has presented nationally on numerous topics related to juvenile justice reform.

Ms. Mariscal holds a BA in Sociology from the University of California at Santa Cruz and earned her Doctorate of Jurisprudence from the Monterey College of Law in Monterey, California.  She currently sits on the board of directors of the W. Haywood Burns Institute for Juvenile Justice Fairness and Equity and the Fund for Nonviolence.

Ms. Mariscal is the proud mother of a daughter, Xochitlquetzal, son, Gabriel and grandson Cuahtemoc.