Ms. Batten is intimately familiar with the dynamics of power that create multiple levels of trauma for survivors of sex trafficking, having served for 15 years as a violent crimes prosecutor in the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office, primarily prosecuting domestic violence and sexual assaults felonies. She remains a zealous advocate for empowering survivors instead of prosecuting them. A graduate of Duke University (1992), majoring in Public Policy and Political Science and the University of Virginia, School of Law (1995), Ms. Batten has been a committed public interest attorney. In law school, she was awarded public interest fellowships to clerk with the ACLU’s Office of Legislative Affairs and the Youth Law Center, focusing on impact litigation to improve the criminal justice system. After her tenure with LADA, Ms. Batten relocated to Washington, DC to serve as a senior attorney for the Office of International Affairs in the U.S. Department of Justice. She currently serves as the Program Director for the Community Resilience Initiatives program at the University of Maryland’s non-profit Center for Health and Homeland Security, engaging with communities to create violence prevention networks.
On both the east and west coasts, Ms. Batten consistently has been committed to community empowerment and is a passionate advocate for youth and survivors of violence. On the west coast, she worked with Peace Over Violence and Stand Up for Kids and was a board member on Wells Bring Hope, Inc. and Big Brothers, Big Sisters of Greater Los Angeles. Since relocating to the east coast, she has served as a community educator and crisis intervention advocate for the DC Rape Crisis Center and as a volunteer for several organizations including Extra Ordinary Birthdays, Dress for Success, and Girl Scouts of America. She is a firm believer in empowering through education and establishing “power with” relationships through thoughtful collaboration.
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