My guest Marlee Liss made history in the justice system when she fought for her sexual assault case to become the 1st in North America to conclude with restorative justice through the courts, instead of sending her assaulter to jail. In this episode, Marlee and I break down the problem with the current prison system and what else is possible. The idea of imprisonment, while preventing some people from even committing a crime in the first place, can also breed more suffering in our communities due to the consequences of the legal procedures themselves. The punitive system has a way of locking patterns of violence into communities without room for change, perpetuating trauma throughout society. Modern punitive processes tend to focus on the person who committed the crime and turn away from all else who were impacted by the event. Restorative justice is an alternative approach to prison in the legal system that includes healing for all involved. It is a process that seeks to repair harm by providing an opportunity for those harmed and those who take responsibility for the harm, to communicate about and address their needs in the aftermath of a crime. Not only is there an opportunity for healing the wounds that came as a result of the crime, but also for the pain that led to the crime being committed in the first place. Becca Speert is an executive and leadership coach, team facilitator, and organizational consultant with more than a decade of coaching experience. She helps people better understand themselves, each other, and the systems they work within, with a focus on self-awareness, communication, relationships, and meaningful change. Becca is an ICF Professional Certified Coach (PCC), National Board Certified Health & Wellness Coach (NBC-HWC), and holds an M.S. in Executive Coaching and Organizational Consulting from NYU. Her work today spans executive and leadership coaching, team effectiveness, facilitation, and organizational consulting. Learn more about Becca’s current work at ExecuMindsetCoach.com. Marlee is a somatic coach, award-winning speaker, author, restorative justice advocate and lesbian Jewish feminist. Since Marlee’s case, she has coached hundreds of women and non-binary folk in healing shame and transforming trauma. Her work has been featured in Forbes, Huff Post, Buzzfeed, the Mel Robbins Show and more. As an award-winning speaker, she's delivered talks for: The US Military SAPRO, Fordham School of Law, University of Toronto, Trauma & Recovery Conference, PEI's Sexual Assault Awareness Week and more. Marlee was 1 of 25 survivors on an elite panel for the National Action Plan to End Gender Based Violence informing federal policy and her story is currently being made into a documentary. To Connect With Marlee: IG: https://instagram.com/marleeliss Speaking/workshop information: https://www.marleeliss.com/speaking Quiz for free personalized resource guide: https://www.marleeliss.com/
