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Denise established Smith Consulting Group, LLC in 2011, offering a distinctive approach
to Forensic Social Work and Mitigation services. Her focus on defense-based advocacy
not only gives a voice to truth but also restores dignity to the accused. Embracing the
concept of second chances, Denise's mitigation practice is primarily dedicated to serving
post-conviction clients sentenced as juveniles and younger adults serving life in
confinement.

Denise brings a wealth of experience, lending her expertise as a Forensic Social Work
Field Education Instructor with the Maryland Office of the Public Defender and Field
Education Liaison with the University of Maryland School of Social Work. With over 20
years in forensic social work and mitigation, she is a trusted source of expertise and
guidance.

As a teacher and mentor, Denise devotes her work to shaping and influencing the
professional growth of social work students in understanding systemic oppression and
cultural humility correlated with the criminal justice system and mass incarceration. She
trains and provides coaching to mitigation professionals around the country. Social
justice, defense-based advocacy, social work education, and the professional
development of mitigation specialists inspires and highlights her practice. Denise’s
dedication to the field was acknowledged when she was selected as the
University of Maryland School of Social Work Field Instructor of the Year in 2018
and elected Chair of the National Alliance of Sentencing Advocates and Mitigation
Specialists (NASAMS) Executive Committee in 2023.