Vera Institute of Justice

Akhi Johnson worked as the director of Vera’s Reshaping Prosecution initiative to help prosecutors limit who enters the criminal legal system and build evidence that doing so is a better path to safety. He led a team with varied experiences, including former prosecutors, defense attorneys, quantitative and qualitative researchers, criminal legal system reform experts, public health experts, community organizers, a communications strategist, and trained facilitators.

Before joining Vera in 2019, Akhi served as an assistant U.S. attorney in Washington, DC, where he handled both local and federal crimes. Akhi was a senior sex offense and domestic violence prosecutor focused on offenses involving children and adults.

In addition to his work, Akhi teaches a mock trial and criminal justice course for people incarcerated at the District of Columbia Jail.

Akhi holds a BA in communications from the University of Southern California and a JD from Georgetown University Law Center.