News & Commentary written by Nina Patel

Nina Patel is Senior Policy Counsel at the ACLU Justice Division, where she develops and advocates for federal policies that counteract mass incarceration, address racial disparities in federal sentencing, protects the civil liberties of people in custody, ends police misconduct, and removes the burdens of criminal convictions. She has over fifteen years of expertise in public policy development, litigation, and advocacy.

Prior to joining the ACLU, Nina served as legislative counsel for Congressman Robert C. “Bobby” Scott where she drafted policy positions into legislation on topics such as criminal justice reform and civil rights. Prior to working on Capitol Hill, she worked for a decade as a public defender in Southern California defending clients in complex felony jury trials. She is a graduate of Tulane Law School in New Orleans and received her B.A. from the University of Virginia double majoring in Political and Social Thought and Foreign Affairs.