In this episode of Everyday Injustice, we sit down with Emily Salisbury, Director of the Utah Criminal Justice Center and associate professor in the University of Utah’s College of Social Work. Trained as a criminologist with a background in forensic psychology, Salisbury has spent her career focusing on justice-involved women and the unique pathways that lead them into—and out of—the criminal legal system. Her early mentorship in graduate school, she explains, inspired her to pursue gender-responsive research and advocate for policy reforms that meet women where they are.
Salisbury breaks down why women are the fastest-growing population in U.S. carceral systems, pointing to decades of tough-on-crime policies, mandatory minimums, and drug sentencing laws that disproportionately ensnare economically marginalized women of color. She underscores how trauma, mental illness, and unhealthy relationships often drive women into the system—noting that traditional correctional strategies, built with men in mind, fail to account for these realities. Salisbury stresses that trauma affects women differently than men, often manifesting as internalized harm rather than outward aggression.
A central part of her work has been developing the Women’s Risk Needs Assessment (WRNA), a validated, trauma-informed tool that identifies the specific challenges and strengths of justice-involved women. Unlike traditional assessments, WRNA includes questions on trauma, unhealthy relationships, and personal resilience—offering a more holistic picture of what women need for successful reentry. Salisbury shares how correctional institutions are beginning to embrace gender-responsive probation models and notes the importance of rigorous research, including randomized controlled trials, to ensure these approaches are effective and evidence-based.
The conversation concludes with a powerful takeaway: women in the criminal legal system pose far less risk to public safety than men, yet they continue to be over-incarcerated. Salisbury discusses the broader implications of abolitionist thinking, international models of humane incarceration, and the urgent need to invest in early intervention and community-based support. As Salisbury puts it, the key to justice reform isn’t more surveillance or punishment—but understanding, compassion, and policies that treat people with dignity.
