Prison Fellowship’s Advocacy and Public Policy Team

Executive Vice President, Strategic Initiatives

Heather Rice-Minus leads Prison Fellowship^® teams that advocate on criminal justice issues, build and deepen partnerships with churches, strengthen relationships between incarcerated parents and their children, and foster partnerships with individual donors, corporations, and foundations invested in Prison Fellowship’s vision and mission. She also co-authored Outrageous Justice^®, the ministry’s small-group curriculum.

Previously, Rice-Minus managed prison reform advocacy efforts at the National Religious Campaign Against Torture and taught English at the University of Djibouti. She is a sought-after public speaker on the intersection of faith, justice, and incarceration, addressing audiences at national conferences and events including Wilberforce Weekend, Q Ideas Conference, and more. She has contributed to Christianity Today, Slate, CBN News, The Marshall Project, PBS' Religion & Ethics Newsweekly, and many other media outlets.

Rice-Minus is a graduate of Colorado State University and George Mason University’s Antonin Scalia Law School. She is a member of the Virginia State Bar, a member of AEI’s Leadership Network, and a Colson Fellow. She resides in Washington, D.C., with her husband and two daughters.

Vice President, Advocacy

Kate Trammell serves as the vice president of advocacy at Prison Fellowship, the nation’s largest Christian nonprofit serving prisoners, former prisoners, and their families. She is well-versed in criminal law and has unique expertise conducting state and federal issue advocacy campaigns and equipping people of faith for political engagement.

Trammell oversees the development of Prison Fellowship’s policy positions on criminal justice issues and directs the organization’s state and federal advocacy initiatives designed to bring justice that restores to those impacted by crime and incarceration across America. This work includes negotiating strategic partnerships, building and maintaining national and statewide coalitions, equipping and mobilizing Prison Fellowship’s grassroots network and Justice Ambassador volunteers, and directing staff and lobbying activity.

In addition, Trammell directs Prison Fellowship’s research and technical writing to build a data-based and values-centered approach to justice that restores. She serves the policymaker members of the Faith and Justice Fellowship, a bipartisan body of members of Congress, governors, and state legislators motivated by their faith traditions to advance restorative values in criminal justice reform. Trammell has contributed to stories on criminal and juvenile justice reform in the New York Times, Christian Post, Business Insider, and various regional publications.

Prior to joining Prison Fellowship, Trammell worked directly with law enforcement, victims of crime, and criminal defendants as a magistrate for the Supreme Court of Virginia. She is a graduate of Liberty University School of Law with added studies in international law and comparative criminal procedure and is a member of the Virginia State Bar. She resides in Northern Virginia with her husband and their two children.

Director, Grassroots

Sammy Perez leads Prison Fellowship’s grassroots program to build and mobilize a network of Christians who are passionate about justice that restores. Perez manages a team to equip Justice Advocates and Justice Ambassadors in the U.S. to raise awareness and improve the criminal justice system through digital advocacy, constituent lobbying, media engagement, and storytelling. After rediscovering faith in Christ, Perez, who has spent time in prison, overcame his past and began to serve others impacted by crime and incarceration, including volunteering as a Prison Fellowship Justice Ambassador before joining as a full-time employee. His writing has been published in Shared Justice as well as several regional Virginia outlets, including the Richmond Times-Dispatch and NoVa News. Perez was reappointed by Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam to the Governor’s Advisory Committee on Juvenile Justice and Prevention in the Commonwealth.

Perez graduated from Liberty University with a degree in psychology, specializing in addiction and recovery, and is currently completing graduate studies in clinical mental health counseling. He enjoys life with his lovely wife and four children.

Manager, Government Affairs

David Jimenez serves as the manager of government affairs for Prison Fellowship’s advocacy and public policy team, where he oversees federal and state legislative campaigns. His background is in public policy advocacy and institution building, most recently as a primary manager for the American Enterprise Institute’s outreach to college students, faculty, and administrators. As an undergraduate at Bowdoin College in Maine, Jimenez studied history and political theory. After graduating, he participated in the Hudson Institute’s Political Studies Fellowship and was a Fulbright English teaching assistant in Romania.

A proud alumnus of Prison Fellowship’s internship program, he first became passionate about criminal justice reform while serving urban youth in New Jersey, where he saw up close the urgent need for restorative approaches to incarceration, law enforcement, and violence. He is passionate about theology, social policy, ethics, and culture. A Pittsburgh native, Jimenez lives in the Columbia Heights neighborhood of Washington, D.C.

Manager, Advocacy Events & Operations

Angela Kim serves Prison Fellowship’s advocacy team by planning and executing national-, federal-, and state-level events to advance justice that restores. She manages the advocacy team’s participation in conferences and speaking engagements and oversees event logistics for Prison Fellowship’s major initiatives like Second Chance Month. She also provides the strategic operational support required to ensure efficiency for all advocacy programs and internal logistics, with an eye towards holistic outcomes. Kim’s lived experience with the criminal justice system and her faith in Christ motivate her to help those who are marginalized and work to advance criminal justice reform.

Kim completed her undergraduate studies in crime, law, and justice at Pennsylvania State University. In addition to her work at Prison Fellowship, she frequently volunteers in the community through special needs ministry and outreach to those who are homeless.

Faith-Based Outreach Manager

Andrew Brashier serves on the policy team as the faith-based outreach manager, creating and developing relationships with pastors and faith leaders to deepen advocacy engagement and church partnerships with Prison Fellowship. Brashier also advocates on issues of criminal justice reform before lawmakers, partner organizations, and members of the faith community. He is committed to encouraging lawmakers to model legislation on the biblical values of justice, equity, mercy, and restoration. Brashier looks forward to co-laboring with ministers and faith leaders through Prison Fellowship’s programs aimed at holistically approaching crime and incarceration. Brashier’s areas of expertise include incarceration, reentry policy, and other issues related to criminal law.

Prior to joining Prison Fellowship, Brashier was a partner at Beasley, Allen, Crow, Methvin, Portis & Miles, P.C., one of the nation’s most prestigious plaintiff’s law firms, and was named 2018 Fraud Section Lawyer of the Year. He is rated by Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review Rating system as “AV Preeminent”; was named a 2018 and 2017 Super Lawyers “Rising Star”; received the Wiedemann & Wysocki Award from the American Association for Justice; received the Distinguished Young Alumni Award from the UAB College of Arts and Sciences; and received the first UAB Young Alumni Rising Star Award. He graduated from Cumberland School of Law at Samford University with a Juris Doctor and certificate in trial advocacy and earned a double major in political science and history from the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB). An Alabama native, Brashier resides with his family in the Birmingham metro area where he pastors at the Anglican Church of the Good Shepherd.

Advocacy Project Manager

Kelli Frager serves the advocacy and public policy team at Prison Fellowship by managing internal and external partnerships, as well as providing project management for advocacy campaigns at the state and federal levels. She brings her commitment to advancing social justice from her extensive background in arts engagement programming and advocacy. Having developed community-building opportunities for people from various backgrounds to connect through art, music, and storytelling, Frager has great passion for celebrating all that makes us human. She participates in the Shakespeare In Prisons Network and has witnessed over and over the power of the arts in transforming individuals and communities on both sides of prison walls. Frager also has the life experience of walking alongside an incarcerated family member since she was a young teen. Seeing how recovery groups, education, creative programs, and faith have made a powerful and lasting impact gives her the deep desire to advocate for incarcerated communities and families. Frager attended Azusa Pacific University and lives in Oceanside, California.

Senior Manager, Policy & Research

Chelsea Friske serves Prison Fellowship’s advocacy team by managing the tracking of criminal justice trends at the state and federal levels, authoring technical writing pieces in support of justice reform campaigns, and producing resources that raise the profile of values-based criminal justice reform.

Friske is a graduate of the University of South Carolina School of Law and Bay Path College, where she studied criminal justice and psychology, with a research focus on the experience of children in the courtroom and the treatment of those convicted of sex offenses. She completed internships in probation and police departments during college and gained experience in the U.S. Attorney’s Office and Commonwealth Attorney’s Office during and after law school. Friske resides in Roanoke, VA with her husband and son.

Justice Ambassador Program Manager

Monika Soto serves Prison Fellowship as the program manager of the Justice Ambassador program. Through her work, she equips Justice Ambassadors to change culture and law by advocating for justice that restores. Prior to joining Prison Fellowship, she worked as the grassroots advocacy manager at March of Dimes. Monika graduated with the highest honors from Columbia University where she obtained her Master of Science degree in social work concentrating in policy practice. During her time at Columbia, she served as a fellow for the Congressional Research Institute for Social Work and Policy, where she worked to expand social workers’ engagement with Congress and the federal government.

Soto has completed internships with New Jersey Assemblyman Gary Schaer as well as the Center for Court Innovation, where she focused on criminal justice reform. She has an innate desire to serve marginalized communities, especially immigrants and communities of color. Soto has a particular interest in the intersectionality between social justice and public policy and enjoys educating those around her on the importance of exercising their civil rights. Monika is a New Jersey native who currently resides in the Tampa Bay area.

Senior Legislative Analyst

Angela Inglett serves Prison Fellowship’s state advocacy team by identifying legislative opportunities, informing policy priorities, and investigating campaign impact. As senior legislative analyst, Inglett provides information necessary to execute effective public policy campaigns. Prior to joining Prison Fellowship, she managed and developed educational programming opportunities for local government officials in the Commonwealth of Virginia. She also spent four years on Capitol Hill, where she managed a diverse portfolio of legislative issues ranging from labor to agricultural policy.

Inglett’s educational background centered on politics and public policy, a choice spurred by her interests in philosophy, morality, and culture. A lifelong citizen of Virginia, Inglett and her husband reside in Richmond.

Legislative Strategist

Ally serves as a legislative strategist for the advocacy team, strengthening connections with state lawmakers, building coalitions, seeking justice reform at the state level, and providing information to influence public policy. Prior to joining Prison Fellowship, Alfonsetti worked in government affairs for a global automotive technology company, handling issues ranging from local tax incentives to international trade agreements. There, she saw the impact and need for criminal justice reform in Michigan. Armed with a biblical worldview, she has always strived to advance public policy that serves God’s mission.

Alfonsetti holds a Bachelor of Arts in political science with a minor in communications from Florida Atlantic University. She has previous experience as a consultant on political campaigns. She and her husband reside in Shelby Township, Michigan, where they attend Woodside Bible Church.

Legislative Strategist

Sarah Decker serves as a legislative strategist for the advocacy team, strengthening connections with state lawmakers, seeking justice reform opportunities at the state level, and providing information to influence public policy. Her passion to serve people affected by crime and incarceration began when she helped lead a Bible study for incarcerated women. This passion grew when Decker participated in Prison Fellowship’s intern program, and God placed a burden on her heart for those that have experienced injustice. Decker believes that a failure to speak up for justice is a silent endorsement of the status quo.

Decker has a degree in political science from the University of Mobile and a juris doctorate from Regent University School of Law. She has experience working as a prosecutor in two Texas counties and working as a staff attorney for the Texas Real Estate Commission. She currently resides in Oklahoma City.

Justice Ambassador Specialist

Amanda Potter serves Prison Fellowship’s grassroots team as a Justice Ambassador specialist to promote justice that restores. With a heart to empower and encourage others to step into their God-given potential and giftings, Potter leads a team of passionate volunteers to engage their local communities, churches, and lawmakers to advocate for those impacted by crime and incarceration. Fully believing that there is never a problem without a heavenly solution, Potter is honored to be working alongside other believers to see the Kingdom come to earth as it is in heaven.

Potter earned her undergraduate degree in family studies and human development at Oklahoma Christian University and is currently pursuing her master’s in clinical mental health. She resides in Oklahoma with her husband and two children and enjoys staying active in her local community and church.

Administrative and Operations Assistant

Christian Pena serves Prison Fellowship’s advocacy team by providing administrative and scheduling assistance in a fast-paced environment. She received a certificate of pastoral leadership at New Life School of Worship and currently resides in Falls Church, Virginia, with her husband.

Hayley Heath serves as the research associate for the advocacy team, where she conducts legislative research and analysis in support of Prison Fellowship’s advocacy and public policy goals. Prior to joining Prison Fellowship, Heath worked as a government affairs coordinator for a global automotive technology company, where she tracked and researched policy at the local, state, federal, and international levels. She has also served as a legislative assistant for a government relations firm and completed an internship with the nonprofit Plan International, where she gained experience working for the "Because I Am a Girl" campaign.

Heath holds a Bachelor of Arts in international relations from Michigan State University and resides in the Detroit metro area. Her experience working in government affairs showed her the importance of advocating for others. She was drawn to Prison Fellowship’s message by friends and family who have worked in the criminal justice system and through her faith in Christ.

Laura Gutierrez serves Prison Fellowship's grassroots team as a Justice Ambassador specialist. Gutierrez works to build relationships with passionate volunteers, equipping them to advocate for justice that restores within their communities. Before joining Prison Fellowship, Gutierrez was a volunteer coordinator for the Afghan refugee program at an immigration and refugee resettlement agency.

Gutierrez is a graduate of John Brown University, where she studied family and human services, intercultural studies, and business. As a college student, she also mentored Latino youth and led a club that raised awareness about criminal justice issues. Gutierrez is deeply committed to serving marginalized communities.