“Judge Steve Leifman is that rare jurist whose wisdom is tempered with compassion and an unfailing desire to improve the lives of those with mental illnesses and substance abuse. We need to listen to this modern-day Dorothea Dix reformer in a black judicial robe who offers readers a sensible path toward ending the shameful use of jails and prisons as mental asylums. I’ve read a lot of books about mental illness. This ranks among the most important.”

~Pete Earley, author of the Pulitzer Prize finalist Crazy: A Father’s Search Through America’s Mental Health Madness

“Judge Steve Leifman is a miracle worker. Everyone who visits the 11th Judicial Circuit Criminal Mental Health Project in Miami-Dade County is blown away by what it does and what it has accomplished. It is now widely known as The Miami Model, and is being emulated across the country; a way to reform the criminal justice system, the police and the mental health care system, finding ways to save lives and save money at the same time. The story of how it came about, how Leifman managed to overcome the multiple obstacles and build support across every conceivable political line, is mesmerizing and Leifman tells if in a compelling and readable fashion. Butit is more than a good read—it is a template for a better future.”

~Norm Ornstein, New York times bestselling author of One Nation After Trump

“Judge Steve Leifman puts a human face on mental illnesses by sharing stories about Americans trapped in an insane criminal justice system that too often fritters away tax dollars, causes additional suffering and puts communities at risk. Thankfully, he offers us a pathway out of this quagmire with effective solutions based on his groundbreaking work in Miami. A must read for anyone who cares about justice and how we treat those who live on the fringes of our society.”

~Patrick J. Kennedy, former Congressman, mental health advocate, and New York Times bestselling author of A Common Struggle and Profiles in Mental Health Courage

Market Opportunity and Audience:

Perfect for readers of Locking Up Our Own by James Forman Jr., Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson, and The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander

The crisis is quantifiable and urgent: People with mental illnesses are 10 times more likely to be incarcerated than hospitalized in the U.S. (Treatment Advocacy Center); 70% of individuals in U.S. jails have a serious mental illness, a substance use disorder, or both (Bureau of Justice Statistics); and more than 2 million people with mental illnesses are booked into U.S. jails annually (Treatment Advocacy Center)

Financial concerns: The U.S. spends an estimated $80 billion annually incarcerating people, with a disproportionate share attributed to individuals with untreated mental illness (Prison Policy Initiative)

Criminal justice reform is a proven commercial category: Just Mercy (2014) has sold over 1 million copies and was adapted into a major motion picture; The New Jim Crow has sold over 1.5 million copies—demonstrating sustained reader appetite for reform narratives grounded in real cases

Policy and election-cycle timing: Criminal justice, police reform, and mental health funding are front-burner issues at the federal, state, and local level; legislatures in 40+ states are actively considering mental health diversion legislation modeled on programs like the JDP

Core audiences: Memoir readers and general readers engaged with criminal justice reform, mental health advocacy, and public policy; mental health professionals, law enforcement professionals; judges, prosecutors, and public defenders; legislators and policy staffers at all levels of government; law school and public policy students and faculty; faith communities engaged in social justice work

Author Credentials

25 years at the forefront of mental health and criminal justice reform, making Judge Leifman one of the foremost national authorities on the intersection of the two systems

Founder of Florida's 11th Judicial Circuit Criminal Mental Health Project (2000), later renamed the Jail Diversion Project (JDP)—the most replicated mental health diversion model in the United States

Recipient of the William H. Rehnquist Award for Judicial Excellence, and the Papal Medal Benemerenti by Pope Francis (2023) for his work on behalf of individuals with mental illnesses in the judicial system

Board of Directors, American Psychiatric Association Foundation; member of the National Leadership Forum for Behavioral Health and Criminal Justice Services; member, American Bar Association Task Force on Criminal Justice Mental Health Standards

Featured extensively in national and international media: CBS News, PBS NewsHour, CNN, NBC Nightly News, NPR's All Things Considered, The Atlantic, The New York Times, The Washington Post, USA Today, and the Miami Herald, among others

Publicity

Print, Broadcast & Major Media:

Major trade reviewers: Publishers Weekly, Kirkus Reviews, Library Journal, Booklist, Shelf Awareness

National Newspapers: The New York, The Washington Post, USA Today, Los Angeles Times, The Guardian, Wall Street Journal, Miami Herald, etc.

Criminal Justice & Policy Media: The Atlantic, The Marshall Project, The Appeal, Politico, The Hill, etc.

Mental Health & Medical Trade: Psychology Today, Psychiatric News, Psychiatric Times, etc.

General Interest & Culture: Time, Newsweek, The New Yorker, Mother Jones, Governing, YES! Magazine, etc.

Broadcast Television: 60 Minutes, PBS NewsHour (prior coverage), CNN, NBC Nightly News (prior feature), MSNBC (Morning Joe, The ReidOut), C-SPAN Book TV, and local Miami affiliates and national syndication

Radio: NPR: Fresh Air with Terry Gross, On Point, 1A, All Things Considered (prior coverage); Marketplace; American Public Media; local NPR affiliates in major markets

Op-Ed Strategy: Bylined pieces by Judge Leifman targeting major newspapers on topics including: the true cost of incarcerating people with mental illness; how the Miami Model can work in any city; what 25 years on the bench taught one judge about mental health; and why closing jails saves money and saves lives

Podcasts

Criminal Justice & Reform: Ear Hustle, Wrongful Conviction with Jason Flom, Justice in America, etc.

Mental Health & Psychology: Bear in Mind, The Verywell Mind, Speaking of Psychology, etc.

Policy, Law & Government: The Ezra Klein Show, Throughline, The Weeds, etc.

Leadership & Social Change: How I Built This, WorkLife with Molly Graham, etc.

Local & Regional: WLRN (Miami NPR affiliate), The Tropical Life, South Florida Sun Sentinel podcasts

Speaking & Event Strategy

Judge Leifman has made more than 1,000 appearances since founding JDP in 2000. He is the primary keynote speaker for the Conference of Chief Justices (CCJ) mental health summits and a regular speaker at regional CCJ Summits and state-wide chief justice’s mental health summit

Regular speaker at conferences held by The National Alliance on Mental Illness, which has 220,000 members

Pursue a large launch event in Florida

Book festival pitch priority: Miami Book Fair, Texas Book Festival, National Book Festival, etc.

Trade & Consumer Marketing

Website Promotion

Featured in trade catalog

Institutional & Organizational Outreach

Organize direct outreach to National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI): 600+ affiliates nationwide, 350,000+ members; request for book promotion in NAMI Advocate magazine and e-newsletters; bulk purchase opportunities for affiliate chapters

Pursue featured promotion in APA publications and APA Annual Meeting

Pre-Order & Launch Incentives

Reading group guide: Develop a discussion guide targeting book clubs, law school seminars, and professional development groups in criminal justice and mental health fields

Social Media & Digital Marketing

Author Platform & Built-in Demand:

Coordinate promotion across Prometheus, Globe Pequot, and author accounts, including Miami Center for Mental Health

Collaborate with The Jail Diversion Project's organizational network, including partner agencies in Miami-Dade (law enforcement, mental health providers, courts)

Digital & Influencer Outreach

BookTok and Bookstagram Influencers: Target accounts focused on social justice, true crime, mental health memoir, and policy nonfiction—estimated 12–15 accounts with 50K–500K followers each in these categories; send ARCs with personalized outreach

Email/newsletters: Pursue opportunities with criminal justice reform newsletters (The Marshall Project's newsletter, ~200,000 subscribers; The Appeal, ~150,000 subscribers); mental health publications; ABA and NAMI member newsletters