Accountable Justice Action Fund

In September 2023, the Accountable Justice Action Fund was listed as a partner organization of the Biden administration’s Office of Gun Violence Prevention during the announcement of the office’s creation. The announcement stated that the office was created to partner with advocacy organizations as an alternative to what it deemed failed policy initiatives aimed at restricting gun ownership. ⁴

Background

The Accountable Justice Action Fund is a lobbying and electoral advocacy organization that was created by the Open Philanthropy Project, funded by donations earmarked for criminal justice advocacy, and managed by its Criminal Justice Reform Program Officer Chloe Cockburn. The Open Philanthropy Project states that it created the Accountable Justice Action Fund to formally organize the funding of criminal justice advocacy done under Cockburn, who works as the Accountable Justice Action Fund’s CEO, and to allow it to independently raise additional funds for its grantmaking. ⁵

The Accountable Justice Action Fund was founded with the support of two donors, $6.3 million from the Open Philanthropy Action Fund, and $10 million from Chan Zuckerberg Advocacy. It is used to anonymously donate to campaigns, particularly district attorney races, that support reducing the severity of charges and reducing sentences under the guise of criminal justice reform. ^{6 3 2}

Founded in 2021 with a $50 million grant from the Open Philanthropy Project, Just Impact Advisors is the 501(c)(3) grantmaking sister organization of the Accountable Justice Action Fund and manages the Accountable Justice Action Funds grantmaking as well. ⁷

Funding of District Attorney Races

During the 2018 district attorney election in Washington County, Oregon, a single donation funding far-left defense attorney Max Wall made the election the most expensive in state history, resulting in speculation regarding the origins of the funding. ^{8 9}

In August 2021, the Capital Research Center reported that Wall’s campaign was almost entirely funded by a $2 million grant that was made to the Law and Justice PAC by the Accountable Justice Action Fund. However, the Capital Research Center reported that representatives from the Open Philanthropy Project denied being the anonymous supporter, indicating that the Accountable Justice Action Fund’s other funder, Chan Zuckerberg Advocacy, used the Accountable Justice Action Fund to fund Wall’s campaign. ¹

The Accountable Justice Action Fund’s $2 million grant to the Law and Justice PAC was also used to fund Rob Langford in the Clark County, Nevada, district attorney race against Democratic incumbent Steve Wolfson. Wall and Langford each campaigned on platforms based on far-left criminal justice policies, including withdrawing from prosecuting low-level offenses, reducing sentences and incarceration overall without regard for the crime committed, and ending cash bail. ^{1 2 3}

Financials

In 2022, Accountable Justice Action Fund reported receiving $19.8 million in contributions. ¹⁰ It also reported $8.5 million in total expenses, including $7.3 million in grants paid and $492,846 in salaries and compensation of employees. ¹¹ The Accountable Justice Action Fund reported paying its CEO and treasurer $321,258 in compensation in 2022. ¹²

Leadership

Chloe Cockburn is the CEO and treasurer of Accountable Justice Action Fund. Cockburn is also the founder and CEO of Just Impact Advisors and previously worked as program officer of Open Philanthropy Project’s criminal justice advocacy. She is also a board member of Bia-Echo Foundation. ^{13 7}