Project Description
Josefina Bastidas, Esq., Deputy Director for CCA’s New York City office, joined the organization in 1999. Ms. Bastidas has a Sociology degree from Central University of Venezuela and law degrees from Santa Maria University, Venezuela and from Georgetown University Law Center, Washington, DC, where she completed her thesis on Comparative Law and Extraterritoriality.
Ms. Bastidas has considerable criminal law experience in both Venezuela, where she had her own practice before becoming a District Judge, and in the US, where she has been working in the alternative to incarceration and reentry fields for over 20 years. Her professional experience also includes teaching Juridical Sociology, Philosophy, and Criminology to law students at the Central University of Venezuela. During her LLM studies at Georgetown University Law School, Ms. Bastidas served as a student intern to the Legal Counsel at the Pan American Health Organization Staff Association, Washington, DC, where she conducted research, drafted briefs and memoranda, and helped prepare cases to be decided by the International Labor Tribunal.
In New York City, Ms. Bastidas has worked to promote alternatives to incarceration in the juvenile justice and criminal justice systems since 1996. In her current role as Deputy Director, Ms. Bastidas oversees all of CCA’s New York City programs and services geared towards helping youth and adults with current or past histories in the juvenile justice or criminal justice systems return to productive and safe lives in their communities. In her past roles at CCA, she has served as Director of the Court Advocacy Unit, Contracts Compliance Manager, Director of HIV and AIDS Services, and Senior Director of Programs for its Youth Services and Health Services. Today, Ms. Bastidas continues to strive to help CCA achieve its project goals, objectives, and its mission to promote reintegrative justice and reduced reliance on incarceration through advocacy, services, and public policy development in pursuit of civil and human rights.
Ms. Bastidas is a member of the New York State Bar.