Lena Mallett belongs to CDF-CA’s Youth Justice team as a Policy Associate straddling state and county issues related to building up community-based alternatives to incarceration while phasing out probation surveillance. Before this position, they worked for a grassroots non-profit in Santa Barbara as a program provider inside facilities and a re-entry case manager for young people returning home. Building community power and learning alongside youth movement leaders keeps Lena grounded in their steadfast vision of abolition.