Board of Directors
Meet the Board
Meet Leslea Miller, President
Leslea Miller is a seasoned hairstylist with over 30 years of experience, making her mark in Arlington, Texas, where she owns and operates her own salon. A devoted grandmother to three, she finds joy in the quiet moments of life—whether nurturing her garden, spending weekends with her grandchildren, or losing herself in the intricate challenge of jigsaw puzzles. A woman of many talents, Leslea is also a gifted photographer, capturing the world through her unique lens, and a natural storyteller, both behind and in front of the microphone.
But Leslea’s life has been shaped by a story far deeper than her many passions. At just 11 years old, her world was forever changed when her father was arrested on four counts of capital murder—a crime he did not commit. Despite their unwavering efforts to prove his innocence, he was tried, found guilty, and sentenced to death in 1984. During those 31 years, Leslea and her family fought tirelessly to exonerate him, but in 2015, the state of Texas carried out his execution. This profound loss was compounded in 2020 when her mother, Shari Bower, published a memoir—Before They Executed Him—detailing their family’s harrowing journey, only to pass away eight months later.
Through it all, Leslea has remained steadfast in her commitment to honoring her parents’ legacy. She carries their story with grace and determination, sharing her life experiences to inspire and educate others. Leslea’s resilience, creativity, and unwavering love for her family are a testament to the strength of the human spirit, and her voice continues to echo the truth of a life marked by both tragedy and triumph.
Meet David Mike
David Mike is a Christ follower, husband, father, author, cancer survivor, and cosmetology instructor in Omaha, Nebraska. David is passionate about sharing the message that we do not have to be defined by our past and that God can use our kind of mess for good. He is the author of Dishonor: One Soldier's Journey from Desertion to Redemption.
Visit dilemmamike.com
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Meet Kat Browning, Treasurer
Kat Browning is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) who has been dedicated to serving vulnerable populations since 2017. With a passion for supporting at-risk individuals, Kat has worked extensively with youth in Oklahoma’s Office of Juvenile Affairs (OJA) custody, providing guidance and therapeutic support to help them navigate challenges and build a brighter future.
Since becoming a fully licensed counselor in 2020, Kat has remained committed to trauma-informed care and trained in Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR). Kat hopes to continue advocating for this population by providing transitional housing solutions that offer stability and healing for those in need.
In addition to clinical work, Kat serves as the Treasurer for Crime & Compassion Inc., further demonstrating a commitment to restorative justice, regaining independence, confidence, and community support.
Kat continues to work toward healing and growth from the bottom up, to create a safe space for the unseen to be heard and valued.
Meet Jimmy Martin
Jimmy Martin is a veteran Field Officer and Chaplain of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ 2005-2015). Jimmy served the state of Texas with honor, passion, and purpose. Working from the rank of Correctional Officer I to Head Chaplin of three TDCJ Units, among them the H.H. Coffield Unit (largest correctional facility in Texas) while serving the public as Liaison to witnesses of the Texas Death Chamber in Huntsville Texas.
Jimmy currently serves as an expert consultant of correctional institutions and capital punishment to media, content creators, and ministries.
Meet Janey Merry, Secretary
Janey Merry is a children’s picture book author. She lives in Oklahoma City with her son, Luke, and their many pets. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Central Oklahoma, majoring in early childhood education. An Okie girl who loves traveling (especially to the beach!) and has a special place in her heart for Japanese culture, she’s a true romantic who swoons over every happily-ever-after.
Janey is the author of “In Stitches”, a short story in the anthology Shivers in the Night, the children’s picture book, Ready, Set, Sloth!, the whimsically fun activity book, Ready, Set, Color!, and the comic series, “The Cavity-Free Club.” She is set to publish her newest children’s picture book, Greener Pastures: A Story of Idioms, in 2026.
On the Inside Board Members
Meet Crystal
Crystal Avilla is the author of many poems, short stories, and journalistic works that have appeared in a variety of publications. Ground Zero is her second novel.
She has spent the last twenty-five years in Mabel Bassett Correctional Center in McLoud, Oklahoma, writing and honing her craft. She is the winner of the Axley Creative Writing Award from Rose State College.
Crystal is a co-facilitator for Writers Guild Advanced & Beginners, where she helps aspiring novelists.
Meet Ashe
Ashe Marks is a women’s fiction and horror writer with a heart full of paint, ink, and poetry. By day, she works on the women’s mental health unit at Mabel Bassett Correctional Center, holding space as an orderly, caretaker, and advocate. By night, she writes stories with big, bold, and powerful heroines—just like Ashe believes all women should be seen. She’s a licensed cosmetology instructor through the R.I.S.E. program, a certified life coach with Life Anew, and a workshop facilitator who’s turned her time into a masterpiece of learning: from ASL to Japanese, from tattooing to storytelling. Ashe believes that if you see a need, it’s your calling—and she answers that call through art, advocacy, and fierce self-expression. She is a facilitator with Poetic Justice and Crime & Compassion Inc. From Summer to Wynter is her debut novel.
Meet Jax
A lifelong educator and creative force, Jax has spent over two decades teaching in correctional settings at Mabel Bassett Correctional Center. Though officially “retired” from the Education Department, she remains deeply active—now teaching more than ever. She currently facilitates Special Needs Education through Mental Health Services, leading peer tutoring programs that serve incarcerated women with medical, mental health, behavioral, and language barriers.
As coordinator of the C3 unit’s Art Guild, she manages staff, inventory, and fundraising while teaching daily arts and crafts classes, fine art, art therapy, and Native American beading. Her passion for creativity extends into spiritual, therapeutic, and practical domains—she co-leads Buddhist services, offers life coaching, teaches botany and agricultural techniques, and contributes to writing programs like Poetic Justice and the Prison Journalism Project, where she also serves as an editor.
She holds degrees in English Education and Journalism, along with certifications in life coaching, paralegal studies, peer facilitation in cognitive behavioral therapy, and electrical work. Her poetry has been featured in Poetry Unbound and Flying Kites, and her anthology Felonious explores her early prison years. Her current novel-in-progress, An Aptitude for Vengeance, is a dystopian epic she envisions as a trilogy.
A lover of high fantasy and dystopian literature, she finds solace in complex stories with moral weight—mirroring her own work in fostering growth and self-expression through education and art. Her belief in “dirt therapy” and the power of planting—both literal and metaphorical—speaks to her mission: to leave behind a harvest of healing, creativity, and hope.
She is a co-facilitator for Writers Guild Advanced and a Crime & Compassion Inc. inside board member.
Inside Board Members Photography by Lisa Loftus — lisaloftus.com