Louis L. Reed

Louis L. Reed, LADC, AADC is a nationally recognized social impact leader focused on justice reform, democratic resilience, and cross-partisan civic engagement. After serving nearly 14 years in federal prison, Reed became a key contributor to the First Step Act of 2018 and has since been directly involved in the passage of 30 federal and state bills, advancing sentencing reform, supervision reform, reentry, and voting rights restoration.

Reed has held senior leadership roles at REFORM Alliance and Dream.org, and previously served as Executive Vice President of the Douglass Project for Justice. He currently serves as Senior National Advisor at Common Ground USA, where he supports national strategy to reduce political violence, strengthen democratic norms, and build durable, cross-partisan civic coalitions.

Reed has also advised on narrative and cultural projects connected to justice and civic life, including Hulu’s UnPrisoned. He is featured in The First Step and When Does Freedom Begin documentaries, and is a special contributor to Holding Liat, which was short-listed for the 2026 Academy Awards.