Shelly Carlson

Shelly Carlson

Shelly Carlson

Criminal Justice Systems Manager, Minnesota Elder Justice Center


Shelly Carlson is the Criminal Justice Systems Manager for the Minnesota Elder Justice Center and conducts elder abuse trainings across the state of Minnesota to law enforcement, prosecutors, judges, probation officers, adult protection services, and domestic violence/ sexual assault advocates. Additionally, Ms. Carlson provides technical assistance and training to communities on establishing and maintaining elder abuse Multidisciplinary Teams (MDT’s) and Coordinated Community Response (CCR’s) teams. Prior to her current position, she coordinated federal elder abuse grants in Minnesota and North Dakota to help create systemic change in regards to elder abuse response, provided direct services to victims of domestic violence, sexual assault and general crime for 18 years in non-profit agencies, prosecutor’s offices and within a campus violence university program, and coordinated federal criminal justice/domestic violence grants at the domestic violence/sexual assault coalition in North Dakota. Ms. Carlson has trained nationally in twenty-three states and two US territories with the National Clearinghouse on Abuse in Later Life, the National Council on Juvenile & Family Court Judges, the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, and the National Sheriff’s Association, in addition to training internationally in the countries of Serbia, Latvia, Lithuania and Moldova for Global Rights for Women and the Advocates for Human Rights. Ms. Carlson earned her Master of Science Degree in Public Administration and her Bachelor of Science degree in Legal Assistance from Minnesota State University – Moorhead, where she has been adjunct faculty.