Barry R. Grissom, Esq.

Barry began his career in private practice in 1983 as a civil litigator specializing in employment discrimination. After 27 years in state and federal court, President Barack Obama nominated him in 2010 as United States Attorney for the District of Kansas, and the Senate confirmed him that August.

As the state's chief federal law-enforcement officer until April 2016, he led an office with 49 Assistant U.S. Attorneys across three offices. During his tenure he:

• Founded the Kansas Civil Rights Symposium, an annual conference bringing Kansas law enforcement and civil rights advocates together
• Founded the district's first Human Trafficking Working Group, coordinating law enforcement, nonprofits and victim service providers
• Created the district's first prosecutor position for the Justice Department's Smart on Crime Initiative, aimed at reducing penalties for low-level, nonviolent drug offenders
• Directed the Project Safe Neighborhoods program and oversaw the Project Safe Childhood program
• Was chosen by Attorney General Eric Holder as one of 15 members of the Attorney General's Advisory Committee

After leaving the Department of Justice, Barry became an advocate for ending cannabis prohibition. In 2016 he spoke at the NORML Legal Seminar on the advantages of ending marijuana prohibition from a U.S. Attorney's perspective. He later became Senior Vice President of Global Policy and Corporate Counsel at Electrum Partners, and he serves on the legal committee of the Last Prisoner Project and the board of the Cannabis Justice Coalition.

As General Counsel of The Forgotten Prisoner, Barry advises executive leadership and the Board of Directors and guides post-conviction, sentence-modification, and justice-reform initiatives in the United States and abroad, especially those addressing outdated cannabis laws and excessive incarceration.