Barry Krisberg's Obituary
Criminologist Barry Alan Krisberg, internationally esteemed for his research on juvenile justice and alternatives to incarceration, passed away Feb. 13. He was 78 years old.
Krisberg was a fierce advocate of redemptive justice. He would often say, “It is what we all would want for ourselves and our family members … a justice system that offers hope …”
Krisberg was very proud to have been a Brooklyn boy from Sheepshead Bay. As an adult, he was always happy to share stories of his childhood in that community. His parents, Hyman and Gertie, owned a candy store and soda fountain. The family of four, including his older sister Marilyn, lived in two small rooms behind the store. Krisberg described his father as quiet and hardworking. He spoke with delight about Gertie’s lively personality. Her welcoming spirit and sharp wit made the candy store a place for community denizens to gather throughout the day and late into the night, covering every workday shift. Many people who worked on the Coney Island boardwalk operating the games or appearing as “spectacles” in the sideshows were store customers. They often lingered at the counter and spoke of lives that were both the same but markedly different than the “Ozzie and Harriet” version that young Krisberg watched on TV. Whether as a very young boy listening to the lived experience of his neighbors or as a maturing young man who could engage the conversation as he worked the soda fountain, Krisberg spent his early life attempting to reconcile the disparities of opportunities available to people at the margins.
Krisberg attended Abraham Lincoln High School, where he was inspired by his teachers and also influenced by the national romance with NASA. He focused on math and engineering and then went to the University of Pennsylvania, intending to major in mathematics. However, after attending an elective course with the notable expert in sociology, Thorsten Sellin, Krisberg redirected his focus to sociology, setting the stage for his many crucial contributions to the field. Krisberg went on to study under the mentorship of the renowned criminologist Marvin Wolfgang. Krisberg received his MA in criminology and, in 1971, completed his Ph.D. in sociology. His dissertation was published under the title Crime and Privilege.
In 1971, Barry and his wife Karen arrived in Berkeley, where he joined the faculty of the School of Criminology at UC Berkeley as an assistant professor; he taught there until 1976, when the school was closed. In 1977, Krisberg became a senior research associate at the National Council on Crime and Delinquency (NCCD) in Oakland before assuming the role of president in 1983. Krisberg’s leadership was characterized as “legendary” for the quality and number of studies on delinquency and justice policy reform. He retired from NCCD in 2010.
In addition to his early faculty appointment at UC Berkeley, Krisberg later taught at Berkeley Law School. After retirement from NCCD, he served as the director of research and policy at the Earl Warren Center for Criminal Justice. He also served on the faculty at the Hubert Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota and the University of Hawaii.
The legislature appointed Krisberg to serve on the California Blue Ribbon Commission on inmate population management. He served as president and fellow of the Western Society of Criminology and the chair of the California Attorney General’s Research Advisory Committee. Krisberg was frequently called upon by private foundations such as the Annie E. Casey Foundation, the Walter Johnson Foundation and the Baptist Community Ministries, as well as numerous other foundations for advice, guidance and leadership. Krisberg’s testimony before a House committee in Washington, D.C., successfully argued to prohibit federal funding to states that locked children up with adults.
In 1993, Krisberg received the August Vollmer Award, the American Society of Criminology’s most prestigious award. The Jessie Ball duPont Fund named Krisberg the 1999 Grantee of the Year for “consistently demonstrating uncommon integrity, leadership, faith, and compassion on behalf of at-risk children and their families … [and] leading national research on the treatment of women and girls in the justice system.”
Krisberg published numerous books and more than two hundred articles on juvenile justice, delinquency and alternatives to incarceration. He was also appointed as special master to the court in several states to ensure adjudicated reform in juvenile detention centers.
Barry Krisberg was a giant among giants in the neverending battle to fight for dignity and decency in the administration of criminal justice.
Barry loved jazz; he and his wife Karen McKie never missed a Monterey Jazz Festival weekend. Both their sons learned music in the BUSD music program. Barry and Karen were active parents in supporting music in the Berkeley Public Schools. Together, they chaperoned two trips abroad with the BHS Jazz Ensemble.
In addition to his wife, Karen, he is survived by his adored sons Moshe (Jessica Katz) and Zaid; beloved granddaughters Memphis and Lyra; loving cousins; and deeply kind and appreciative friends and colleagues.
A celebration of Barry Krisberg’s life will be announced at a later date. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to the Berkeley Public Schools Fund or a charitable organization of your choice.
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