Who we are

Florence Laufer holds a Masters’ degree in Human Geography from the University of Geneva. She has worked with the Swiss Interchurch Aid in Lausanne, with the United Nations in New York and with the Cordoba Peace Institute in Geneva. She has managed programs of international development, of conflict transformation and worked for the integration of cultural and religious diversity. Florence Laufer is the director of Prison Insider since august 2019, and vice-president of the Plateforme Droits Humains since December 2020.

Holding a degree in Public Law from the University of Paris II and a degree in Social Innovation Management from ESCD 3A, Madeleine Dykmans manages the administration, human resources, and finances of Prison Insider. Her interest in human rights and nonprofit management led her to join the team in May 2024.

Carolina Nascimento holds a degree in international studies from the University of Santa Catarina, in Brazil, and a Masters’ degree in political science from the École Normale Supérieure in Lyon. Carolina has joined the team of Prison Insider in August 2018. A Brazilian national, she has travelled extensively for academic and professional purposes and she is based in France since 2015. Carolina coordinates the activities of the Information Team.

Mehdi Faïez holds a degree in Applied Foreign Languages (Arabic-English) from the Université Sorbonne Nouvelle - Paris III, and a general university diploma in Chinese Studies from the Institut National des Langues et Civilisations Orientales (INALCO). He grew up in California, moved to France in 2018, and joined the Prison Insider team in January 2022. He is Publications Officer on the Information team.

Clémence Bouchart holds a Masters’ degree in fundamental rights from Laval University in Quebec. She has joined Prison Insider in April 2021. Clémence is a legal expert, specialised in international humanitarian law, and has worked with Osons le DIH!, the French Red Cross and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). Clémence coordinates thes activities of the Comparison Team.

Marion Devesa Haurillon holds a master’s degree in Law and the History of Human Rights, as well as a double bachelor’s degree in international law and foreign languages. She joined the Prison Insider Information team in 2022, then joined the Comparison team in 2024 as publication officer.

Itzelhi Rubio Madrid holds a degree in Strategic Communication with a specialisation in Social Communication from ITESO University in Mexico. She has extensive experience working on various projects within the Mexican prison system. Itzelhi joined the Prison Insider team in June 2024 as the communication and dissemination officer.

Lola Martin Moro holds a Masters’ degree in Peace Studies from the University of Paris-Dauphine. She joined Prison Insider in 2021 as a PhD student, as part of the CIFRE initiative (Convention industrielle de formation par la recherche). Working closely with the Prison Insider team, Lola is in charge of the development of the Prison Life Index and she studies its aggregation model.

Sara Blanc Thoumine holds a graduate degree in European and International Studies from the University of Jean François Champollion. She joined Prison Insider in January 2023 as project officer for the Prison Life Index. She coordinates data collection and analysis in accordance with the index’s methodology.

Nathália Keller Rorato holds a bachelor’s degree in International Relations from Brazil and a master’s degree in Political Science from the École Normale Supérieure in Lyon. With her experience in project management, monitoring, and evaluation within local and international organisations, she has been the development officer at Prison Insider since April 2024.

Diana Giron Silva is a Colombian national. She works with Prison Insider’s team since 2016. A graduate in Applied Foreign Languages and with a degree from the ESIT (School of Interpretation and Translation), Diana has experience as a translator for the IFHR (International Federation of Human Rights) of UNESCO. She has a strong personal commitment to human rights. She coordinates Prison Insider’s network of volunteer translators.

Jaufré Vessiller–Fonfreide is a graduate in English and German languages and literature (LLCE) from the Lyon 2 University and holds a degree from the ESIT (School of Interpretation and Translation). Jaufré works with Prison Insider’s team since 2015. He participates in the coordination of Prison Insider’s network of volunteer translators.

Maura Schmitt is an American national. She holds a BA in French and a Master’s degree in Translation. She has worked with Prison Insider’s team as a translator since 2019.

Combining his professional practice as a journalist and his commitment to social responsibility, Bernard Bolze set up the International Observatory on Prisons in 1990. He focused on the issue of detention by organising campaigns and public events. In 2008, he joined the office of the Controller-General for Places of Deprivation of Liberty (the French National Preventive Mechanism) where he stayed for several years. He has initiated numerous publications on prisons, among which the first edition of the Guide du prisonnier (published by Editions de l’Atelier, 1995) and Prisons de Lyon, une histoire manifeste (published by LieuxDits Editions, 2013). In 2014, Bernard Bolze initiated the Prison Insider project, which he directed until 2019. He is now a member of the Board.

Frank Berton has been a lawyer since 1989. He has submitted numerous defence speeches, in proceedings relating to both minor offences and more serious crimes, which has made him one of the most sought-after solicitors in the country. Logging around fifteen hearings each year in the criminal courts, Mr Frank Berton is one of France’s busiest criminal defence lawyers. He is known for having assisted several of the individuals acquitted in the Outreau case. He also fought from day one to bring Florence Cassez back to France when she was being held in Mexico.

Many remember Frank Berton’s defence of the suffering, solitude, or even insanity of mothers accused of infanticide in a number of highly publicised cases. But Frank Berton has also fought, with the same dedication, to defend hundreds of unknown people. Frank Berton pleads everywhere and for everyone: justice is his cause.

Jean-Marie Delarue studied at the École normale supérieure de Saint-Cloud, the École Pratique des Hautes études, the University of Paris VIII and the École nationale d’administration. His past roles include Inter-Ministerial Delegate for Urban Affairs and Urban Social Development (1991-1994), Director of Civil Liberties and Legal Affairs for the Ministry of the Interior (1997-2001), Controller General of Places of Deprivation of liberty (2008-2014), Member of the National Ethics Advisory Committee (since 2013) and President of the National Control Commission on Security and Communications Interceptions in 2014. On 15 September 2015, it was announced that Jean-Marie Delarue had been removed from consideration for the role of chair of the new National Commission for the Control of Intelligence Techniques. He was considered too independent to hold this role.

Pınar Selek is an author, a sociology research fellow, and the founder and editor-in-chief of the magazine Amargi. A feminist and anti-militarist activist, she stands at the crossroads of these driving forces, navigating and reshaping the paths she takes.

Her own path was rerouted by the repression of the Turkish judicial system. She was forced to leave her country, persecuted for her research on the Kurdish political diaspora. Today, after 24 years of trials, she is still fighting for a final and conclusive acquittal. She has lived in France since 2011, where she was granted academic asylum. Since then, more a nomad than an exile, she has sown seeds along her path, through her encounters with others, her battles, her research and her stories. Pınar has not stopped writing or speaking out on behalf of people around the world whose human rights are being violated.

Photo: © Mujgan Arpat