.svg)
What happens when a prosecutor walks into a prison, sits across from someone she could have sent there, and realizes she can't say she wouldn't have done the same thing in their shoes?
That's the story of Hillary Blout. She spent six years as a prosecutor in the San Francisco DA's office handling violent crimes against women and children. She was good at her job. Then she visited a prison, heard the stories of the people inside, and couldn't keep going.
So she left. And she built something that had never existed: a legal pathway for prosecutors to bring people back to court and recommend shorter sentences. She drafted the nation's first Prosecutor-Initiated Resentencing law, founded the nonprofit For The People, and has since helped resentence over 1,000 people across six states.
In this conversation, Hillary and Healey explore:
- Why she couldn't sit in judgment after hearing the full stories of incarcerated people
- The 500% increase in women in American prisons and the trauma-to-prison pipeline
- Why perspective-taking outperforms emotional empathy in changing minds (76% success rate, per Stanford/Kellogg research)
- The data: 3-8% recidivism for resentenced people, up to $287M saved in one county, 97% court success rate
- Why everyone loves a comeback story, except in the one place people need it most
This is a conversation about justice, leadership, and what happens when you choose partnership over combat. Whether you're running a company, managing a team, or trying to change someone's mind about anything, Hillary's playbook applies.
