Implicit Bias in the District Attorney’s Office

On July 10th & 11th, I had the opportunity to do implicit bias training for the Wyandotte Co. District Attorney’s Office in Kansas City. D.A. Mark Dupree invited me to train his entire staff of about 70, over two days of training. Bias that exists at the level of the DA’s office plays a major role in the racial disparities that exist in the criminal justice system. It is never an easy conversation to have but having the courage to lean in to this discussion says a lot about the direction DA Dupree is taking his office. We discussed bias at essentially every level of prosecutorial discretion, from charging decisions, to bail setting, plea bargaining and sentencing. We concluded our sessions with discussions about potential bias mediating strategies that may be helpful to reduced disparities in the system.