CARRBORO – People make mistakes. They do stupid things; they make bad choices. Do they deserve a second chance? This Carrboro startup founded by a pair of former prosecutors thinks so.
Lexi Loci Labs, founded in 2016 by Branny Vickory, a former district attorney for the eighth district of North Carolina, and Frank Swindell, former state assistant attorney general, has developed a “pre-arrest diversion” case management platform. [Lex Loci is a Latin term for A “law of [the] place.”]
It works to give second chances to low-level offenders. Instead of getting charged with a misdemeanor, the person is channeled into programs like rehab, anger management or even career counseling.
The software is also able to track long-term outcomes, including recidivism rates.
“[It’s about] empowering real-world criminal justice reform,” Vickory said.
Branny Vickory
Frank Swindell
Since implementing its platform, North Carolina’s Orange County has successfully diverted 93 misdemeanor offenders — with “a 100 percent program-completion rate through June 2020,” said Caitlin Fenhagen, Orange County’s criminal justice resource director, in a statement.
“By diverting low-level offenders, Orange County is saving tax dollars, keeping low-level offenders out of the criminal justice system and providing them the support they need to not re-offend,” she said.
“We’re also pleased to share that none of the program participants were re-arrested within a six-month period following program completion.”
Mission driven
As prosecutors in North Carolina, Vickory and Swindell saw firsthand how the criminal justice system was “inefficient, expensive, and broken.”
“Jail and fines aren’t effective at preventing future criminal behavior, evidenced by high recidivism rates,” Vickory said.
“We also know that the criminal justice system is inequitable, with different demographics suffering disparate impacts.”
So they created their flagship product. They believe increasing the availability of diversion programs is the best way to address these problems.
They also argue that a software solution, with its ability to scale, track and measure outcomes, will lead to the most effective outcomes for diversion programs.
The platform is already used by Orange County’s six law enforcement agencies.
It’s also quickly gaining traction with government technology investors and incubators.
Last year, government tech accelerator CivStart selected the startup to join their two-year startup cohort.
Lex Loci also won NC TECH’s “Digital Transformation” category.
Its founders remain positive and ready to scale.
“We know that our technology helps administrators improve the effectiveness and equitability of the criminal justice system on a county-by-county basis, which has been our goal from day one.”
