Who is CfEC?
Supported by Towards Employment, Citizens for Efficient Courts (CfEC) is a coalition of criminal justice experts and practitioners that seeks to lower barriers created by the collateral consequences of incarceration. We work on a broad range of issues including measures to reduce court fines and fees, expunge records, and dismiss non-prosecutable warrants. We have worked with state legislators, judges at all levels of the Ohio judiciary and key administrators, including the Chief Clerk of the Cleveland Municipal Court (CMC), and the Office of the Ohio Attorney General.
Meet the Committee
Brian Balogh
Coordinator, Citizens for Effective Courts
Senior Fellow, Levin School, Cleveland State University
Professor of History Emeritus, University of Virginia
Paul F. Hergenroeder, MD
Law Student CSU '25,
Law Clerk, LegalWorks,
Policy focus: Dormant Warrant Withdrawal Initiatives
Patrick Higgins
Patrick Higgins serves as Policy Counsel for the ACLU of Ohio where he works on state and local advocacy related to the ACLU Campaign for Smart Justice, a multiyear effort to reduce the U.S. jail and prison population and combat racial disparities in the criminal legal system.
Cait Kennedy
Cait Kennedy is the Executive Director & Co-founder of unBail Labs, a non-profit developing technology that advances equity, efficiency, and transparency in the criminal legal system.
Colleen OToole
Former Ashtabula County Prosecutor
Legal Consultant and Commercial Court Judge Emirate of Abu Dhabi
Former Judge 11th district court of appeals (retired)
Law Proffessor and Adjunct Lecturer
Jill Rizika
Jill Rizika is President and CEO of Towards Employment, a community-based non-profit which champions the potential of every person to succeed in a rewarding career, while working to create an equitable and inclusive workforce for tomorrow. Ms. Rizika was recognized as a White House “Champion of Change” for her work on second chance hiring; received the Pillar Award for non-profit Executive Director of the year; named a NEO “Smart 50” executive by Smart Business magazine and a Crain’s Business Magazine Woman of Note.
Jocelyn Rosnick, Esq.
Jocelyn Rosnick is the Policy Director for the ACLU of Ohio where she oversees administrative, legislative, and policy advocacy efforts across issue areas. Rosnick also serves as an adjunct faculty member at the Mandel School for Applied Social Sciences at Case Western Reserve University and is on the Towards Employment Board of Directors.
Suzan Sweeney
Katrice Williams, Esq., MSSA, MNO
Katrice Williams is the Ohio Access to Justice Foundation Justice for All Legal Fellow at Ohio Legal Help, and the Legal Director for Freedom to Learn Advocates, a nonprofit that is committed to ensuring unfettered access to information and books. Katrice has joined the CfEC committee to reduce socioeconomic and income disparities related to driving and help all Ohioans have a fair shake at justice.