Bio
Somil Trivedi was a Senior Staff Attorney in the Criminal Law Reform Project, working closely with the ACLU’s Campaign for Smart Justice. Trivedi focused on prosecutorial and criminal law reform litigation, policy, and advocacy. His work integrated novel lawsuits and amicus briefs with legislative, advocacy, and voter education efforts to change incentives for law enforcement and reduce mass incarceration and racial disparities in the criminal justice system. He spoke and wrote nationwide on criminal law and prosecutorial reform issues, and his work has been featured in the New York Times, LA Times, and The Marshall Project, among other outlets.
Trivedi was previously a trial attorney at the Department of Justice’s Fraud Section and the United States Attorney’s Office in Washington, D.C. Before that, he worked in white collar criminal and regulatory defense, representing clients in investigations before DOJ, state attorneys general, district attorneys, and the U.S. Congress. He also maintained a robust pro bono practice that included civil rights lawsuits and Supreme Court and appellate briefs with the ACLU, Innocence Project, and Center for Constitutional Rights, among others. He currently serves on the Board of the Innocence Project of Texas, and has previously chaired advisory committees to the Center for Constitutional Rights and the Brooklyn Family Defense Practice.
Trivedi holds a BA from Georgetown University and a JD from Boston University School of Law.
Featured work
![Sign of white dove reading "End Qualified Immunity", Qualified Immunity gives police officers immunity in the court of law given certain circumstances.](https://assets.aclu.org/live/uploads/2021/03/End-Qualified-Immunity-Header-Image-400x266.jpg)
Mar 19, 2021
We Must Abolish Qualified Immunity to Prevent Further Police Harm — Especially for People in Mental Health Crises
![Black Lives Matter protesters stand with a banner that reads "Prosecute Police" to demand justice for Jacob Blake](https://assets.aclu.org/live/uploads/2021/01/Police-Prosecutors-Header-Image-1-400x266.jpg)
Jan 15, 2021
The Unspoken Agreement Between Prosecutors and Law Enforcement
![People gather in Jefferson Square in Louisville, awaiting word on charges against police officers in the death of Breonna Taylor.](https://assets.aclu.org/live/uploads/2020/09/WEB20-Breonna-Taylor-Rally-WordPress-1110x740-1-400x266.jpg)
Sep 28, 2020
True Justice for Breonna Taylor Won’t Come From Criminal Charges Alone
![Maricopa County Attorney Allister Adel](https://assets.aclu.org/live/uploads/2020/08/WEB20-maricopa-county-blog-wordpressREV2-1110x740-1-400x266.jpg)
Aug 26, 2020
Adel’s Hidden Agenda: ACLU Exposes Maricopa Prosecutor’s Hypocrisy
![Photo of prison cell bars.](https://assets.aclu.org/live/uploads/2020/07/COVID-Litigation-Header-Image-400x266.jpg)
Jul 27, 2020
Incarcerated People are Still Dying of COVID-19, and We’re Still Fighting to Save Them
![Protesters hold a banner that says, "Prosecute Killer Cops" in front of Los Angeles City Hall during the demonstration.](https://assets.aclu.org/live/uploads/2020/06/Slate-Repost-Header-Image-400x266.jpg)
Jun 26, 2020
Why Prosecutors Keep Letting Police Get Away With Murder
![plea bargaining](https://assets.aclu.org/live/uploads/2020/01/Plea-Bargaining_Blog-Image1-400x266.jpg)
Jan 13, 2020
Coercive Plea Bargaining Has Poisoned the Criminal Justice System. It’s Time to Suck the Venom Out.
![Image of a gavel in a courtroom](https://assets.aclu.org/live/uploads/2019/10/WEB19-Empty-Courtroom-WordPress-1110x740-400x266.jpg)
Oct 24, 2019
Why is Missouri So Afraid of Finding out Whether Lamar Johnson is Innocent of Murder?
![Antron McCray](https://assets.aclu.org/live/uploads/2019/09/web19-antron-mccray-1160x768-400x266.jpg)
Jun 18, 2019
Black Boys Aren’t “Wolf Packs” and Abusive Prosecutors Aren’t “Lone Wolves”
![Bill Montgomery](https://assets.aclu.org/live/uploads/2019/09/web19-bill-montgomery-1160x768-400x266.jpg)
May 22, 2019
We’re Suing Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery to Release the Records He’s Hiding From Arizonans.