Mary Shilton, Executive Director

ICCA Executive Director, Mary Shilton, has worked in the criminal justice field since 1972. Most recently, Mary was the Project Coordinator for ICCA’s “What Works in Community Corrections” project.  As an association professional she has served as Executive Director of National TASC and the National Association of Criminal Justice Planners. Mary has also worked in the law enforcement field as a criminal justice planner. She formerly served as the National Communications Strategist for the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Program of the Office of National Drug Control Policy where she authored the first National Report on High Intensity Drug Control Programs.

Mary is Vice Chair of the National Committee for Community Corrections and serves as Vice President of its Center for Community Corrections and has coordinated its grants, publications and meetings.

As an attorney and past chair of the Corrections and Sentencing Committee of the American Bar Association, she has drafted policy resolutions and materials for various organizations advocating for improved community corrections.

Mary enjoys explaining why criminal laws should be research-based. She has spoken at many conferences on this subject, and delivered testimony on Capitol Hill as a former Washington DC Representative of the ICCA. She served as adjunct faculty at the George Washington University Law School teaching criminology. Mary is the author or co-author of more than 30 articles, research studies and monographs on the subject of community corrections laws, and improving treatment and justice systems. 

Shilton also directed a project for the American Bar Association on Cost Effective Correctional Options. As an independent consultant, Mary has specialized in community based treatment and correctional programs, citizen involvement and intergovernmental relations. She has served on Peer review teams for several Federal agencies and continues to participate in many working groups and national coalitions. Mary has experience in the juvenile justice field and as a litigation lawyer. She has a JD from Hastings College of Law and an interdisciplinary Masters in Youth, Social Policy and Corrections from the University of Oregon.

Email: mshilton@iccaweb.org