Amy Cross

Amy Cross was a senior program associate in Vera’s Center on Sentencing and Corrections, where she worked on reducing the use of jails and pretrial incarceration.

Prior to joining Vera, Amy spent four years as a public defender with the Legal Aid Society in the Bronx and Brooklyn, NY, where her advocacy for decarceration took root. After this, she directed a portfolio of research and technical assistance projects at the National Network for Safe Communities aimed at reducing incarceration, violence, and the police-community trust deficit in several jurisdictions. In 2019, Amy completed a year-long FUSE Corps executive fellowship in Los Angeles, where she advised the County’s probation department on community-centered, evidence-based approaches to reentry services. Amy has also worked as a high school teacher and a youth organizer—two practices that have informed and shaped her approach to justice transformation.

She holds a JD from Cardozo School of Law, an MEd from Queens College, City University of New York, and a BA from Smith College.