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Liz Richards to Lead Victim Services Programs for Minnesota Department of Corrections

St. Paul, Minn. – The Minnesota Department of Corrections (DOC) announces Liz Richards will lead the DOC's victim services programs, effective July 1, 2021. Richards is currently the Executive Director of Violence Free Minnesota.

When Richards joins the DOC, she will direct the DOC's victim assistance work statewide.

"The Department of Corrections is fortunate to have Liz lead this important work for our agency. Her extensive experience and work with community-based programs across our state will elevate our goal of providing responsive and fully coordinated services to crime victims," said Commissioner Paul Schnell. "Liz's background in researching, developing, and promoting operational and legislative policies that foster community safety and victim healing will play a critical role in helping us fulfill our mission of "transforming lives for a safer Minnesota," Schnell added.

Richards has over thirty years of experience working with victims and associated programs. As the Executive Director of Violence Free Minnesota she leads staff in advancing public policy, increasing public awareness, and strengthening advocacy programming for victim/survivors of domestic & sexual violence.

Bobbi Holtberg, Executive Director of the Minnesota Alliance on Crime, has worked with Richards in several capacities over the last 15 years.

"Liz's commitment to the field of victim services is unwavering and her passion for person centered advocacy is unmatched," Holtberg said. "Liz has a documented history of building mutually beneficial relationships, with internal and external stakeholders, that result in strengthened support and services for victims of crime. Liz will be a tremendous asset at DOC."

Prior to working at Violence Free Minnesota, Liz was a family law attorney in private practice working in both rural and urban counties. She has worked at the non-profits Standpoint and Domestic Abuse Project, and within the Hennepin County Attorney's Office. Liz Richards is a Minnesota licensed attorney.

"I am excited to bring in my experience and merge it with the knowledge already present within DOC," said Richards. "I see my role as building bridges between the community and the DOC to meet the needs of victim/survivors and their families."

To learn more about the DOC's current victim assistance programs, visit: mn.gov/doc/victims

To learn more about Violence Free Minnesota, visit: vfmn.org

 

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