Las Vegas-area tech entrepreneur and startup community veteran tapped to lead national criminal justice data organization
Henderson, NV / Rochester, NY, April 1 2026 — Measures for Justice (MFJ) recently announced that Henderson resident Michael J. Smith will become the organization’s new Chief Executive Officer. Smith, who has spent more than two decades building technology companies in the Las Vegas area, brings a deep entrepreneurial track record and a lifelong commitment to using data and software to improve complex public systems.
Smith is a familiar face in Nevada’s startup ecosystem. In 2002, he founded Raster Media in Las Vegas, growing it into a recognized regional tech firm before closing it in 2016. During that time, he served as a startup mentor and technology partner of the Vegas Tech Fund, helping shape the emerging innovation community that would put Las Vegas on the map as a startup destination. He went on to launch Evus Technologies, a Las Vegas-based venture studio, and in 2018 founded Evertel — a secure communications platform often described as “Slack for cops” — in Las Vegas. In 2023, he sold Evertel to Genasys Inc. (NASDAQ: GNSS), a publicly traded public safety technology company, and the platform has since been adopted by police departments nationwide.
A Henderson resident for 24 years and father of four children raised in the community, Smith’s roots in Nevada run deep — and he plans to put them to work in his new role.
“Being based in Nevada, I’m looking forward to spending time on the ground with agencies and community leaders here,” says Smith. “States like Nevada, where systems vary widely across counties, are where better data can have an immediate impact on day-to-day decisions, not just long-term policy.”
Trained in design thinking and user-centered innovation, Smith has led the development of hundreds of software products across multiple industries, including public safety, health care, and youth justice. As CEO, he will advance MFJ’s mission of making reliable information a cornerstone of a more effective and responsive criminal justice system.
“I’ve spent my career using technology to uplift the human experience, and Measures for Justice is the culmination of that work,” says Smith. “If we can build true visibility into the criminal justice system that helps police, prosecutors, and the courts do their work better, we will be laying the foundation for equity, equality, and meaningful reform. If we get this right, we’re looking at generational change.”
“Choosing the right leader for this organization meant finding someone who could honor our past while boldly shaping our future, and Michael Smith is that person,” said Ayanna Clunis, MFJ’s Board Chair. “He is a builder at his core: of technology, of teams, and of lasting institutions. What struck our Board most was not only his impressive track record, but his genuine excitement to partner with the talented people already doing this work every day.”
Smith also helped design and launch the Spirit Project, a data-driven system to reduce youth recidivism by connecting young people to effective community-based services, and has led technology initiatives with institutions including the Cleveland Clinic on Alzheimer’s research.
About Measures for Justice
Measures for Justice is changing the future of criminal justice through tools that help communities and the institutions that serve them reshape how the system works. Since 2011, Measures for Justice has worked with communities, courts, prosecutors, and police to shine a light on what criminal justice looks like nationwide; collaborated to standardize and improve criminal justice data nationwide; and created tools, provided services, and led research to help create a criminal justice system that is fully transparent, accessible, and accountable.
For more information, visit www.measuresforjustice.org
Media Contact: Khyrun Rabbani — khyrunnessa.rabbani@
