“Rebellious lawyering says…this is the way the system is designed, but this is not the way it should be. How can I use my role within the system to create that better world and to really make it accessible for other people?”

2021 BIOGRAPHY

Tricia Rojo Bushnell is the Executive Director of the Midwest Innocence Project, which works to free innocent people convicted of crimes they did not commit. She is responsible for managing all aspects of MIP and serves as its lead attorney, representing clients in court and in clemency proceedings. Tricia believes in the power of community and what we can achieve together and is honored to serve as the current president of the Innocence Network, an affiliation of 68 innocence organizations around the country and the world.

A California native of Mexican descent, Tricia is the first in her family to go to college, receiving her B.A. from Bucknell University and her J.D. from NYU School of Law. She approaches problems with the belief that representation matters and that the solutions to problems must come from those directly impacted. She has engaged this philosophy in her previous work as an assistant clinical professor at the University of Wisconsin School of Law, a fellow with the Equal Justice Initiative (EJI) in Montgomery, Alabama, and an associate at the law firm of Kirkland & Ellis in Los Angeles. She has also served as the president of the ACLU of Missouri and on the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce’s Diverse Business Committee.

Outside of work, Tricia loves exploring new destinations on foot or by bike, and you can catch her sipping coffee and eating gluten-free pastries at her favorite coffee shops around town.