"For to be free is not merely to cast off one's chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others."
— Nelson Mandela
Our Origin
Praxis began as ATAC — Arizonans for Transparency and Accountability in Corrections — focused on prison oversight. In 2025, the organization rebranded as Praxis Initiative to reflect broader work across independent oversight, criminal legal system reform, skills training for returning citizens, and arts in prison programming.
What Praxis Means
Praxis is the connection between reflection and action: turning lived experience, analysis, and strategy into real-world change. It is the practice of applying what you know from direct experience to create meaningful, lasting reform.
Leadership
John Fabricius
Co-Founder & Executive Director
John Fabricius is the Co-Founder and Executive Director of Praxis Initiative, a 100% system-impacted nonprofit transforming Arizona's criminal legal system through independent prison oversight, sentencing reform, drug policy advocacy, and civic training for returning citizens.
Born in Phoenix, John served 15 years in Arizona state and contracted prisons across multiple complexes and out-of-state facilities. During incarceration, he earned a paralegal degree, supported post-conviction and civil rights litigation, and created a music education program that continues inside ADCRR facilities.
After release, John worked in civil rights legal support, digital organizing, and legislative campaign strategy. From 2022 to 2024, he served as a Senior Digital and Legislative Campaigner at Dream.Org, supporting reform campaigns across multiple states and federal efforts. In Arizona, he helped lead campaigns for Home Confinement and Independent Prison Oversight.
In 2025, John and a bipartisan coalition helped pass SB 1507, creating Arizona's Office of Correctional Oversight. Today, he leads Praxis Initiative full-time, combining lived experience, legal analysis, coalition strategy, and public education to advance transparency, accountability, and second chances.
Our Team
J Alexandria Hunt-Garcia
Director of Community Health & Harm Reduction
J Alexandria Hunt-Garcia leads Praxis Initiative's community health, overdose prevention, and drug policy reform initiatives. With deep expertise in harm reduction, health equity, and grassroots advocacy, Alex centers the dignity and wellness of system-impacted individuals, bridging frontline public health interventions with statewide policy reform across Arizona.
Jessica Johnson
Policy Director
Jessica Johnson is the Policy Director at Praxis Initiative, specializing in statutory analysis, sentencing reform, and capital mitigation. Having served eight years inside the Perryville women's prison complex, Jessica brings profound lived experience and legal expertise to policy strategy. She was a pivotal leader in the campaign to pass SB 1507 establishing independent prison oversight in Arizona.
Mindi Kraicinski
Corrections Operations & Facility Oversight Specialist
Mindi Kraicinski brings over two decades of frontline operational insight as a retired corrections officer within the Arizona prison system. Mindi provides critical expertise regarding facility protocols, staffing realities, and institutional accountability standards, bridging internal correctional dynamics with independent external oversight.
Sherri Scates
Community Organizing & Family Advocacy Coordinator
Sherri Scates coordinates community organizing, family engagement, and strategic narrative advocacy for Praxis Initiative. Rooted in her dedication to families impacted by the justice system, Sherri organizes community forums, supports families navigating ADCRR bureaucracy, and empowers impacted people to advocate directly before lawmakers.
Lori Hamilton
Executive Assistant & Development Coordinator
Lori Hamilton has been directly and indirectly impacted several times throughout her life, and has survived a series of challenges that required her to make significant changes in order to achieve a so-called typical life today. She brings a world of lived experience and firsthand knowledge to the fight.