Education
Desha Jackson has an impressive and extensive resume working in government, most notably at the NJ Department of Law and Public Safety Office of the Attorney General as a Deputy Attorney General (DAG) assigned to the Office of State Police Affairs from 2002-2007. This office was created by the 1999 consent decree between the State New Jersey and the United States Department of Justice which addressed the issues of racial profiling. As a DAG she primarily served as the prosecutor in disciplinary proceedings against New Jersey State Troopers. She also served as the Assistant Director of the Equal Employment Division of the New Jersey Department of Corrections where she assisted in investigations of corrections officers and staff discrimination complaints, provided advice with regard to equal employment issues, as well as provided training to employees about the anti-discrimination policy and procedures. Desha also worked as a legal assistant at the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office in 1997 before becoming the first African-American female Assistant Prosecutor to be hired at the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office in its 150-year history. Desha talks very candidly about her personal experience as an African American woman, her experience working on racial discrimination in law enforcement and insights on how to provide more effective training to prevent racial profiling. Desha is a huge supporter of creating a safe environment for law enforcement and the public and has progressive ideas about how to provide a better climate for the divide between law enforcement and the public in our current society. Desha also talks about her personal experience growing up, and how her childhood experiences impact her today - and her big plans for the future that do not involve being a lawyer.