People » Program StaffHeidi Altman, Equal Justice Works Fellow, Immigration Services Project
Heidi came to NDS in 2008 as an Equal Justice Works Fellow, sponsored by the law firm of Davis Polk & Wardwell. At NDS, she consults with NDS non-citizen clients and their attorneys to minimize the immigration consequences of a client's criminal case, and also provides direct representation to NDS clients on immigration matters. Heidi received her JD from New York University School of Law in 2008, where she participated in the Immigrant Rights Clinic. Prior to law school, she worked as a paralegal at the Asylum Legal Representation Program at Human Rights First. Heidi has also earned a MA in international affairs from Columbia University.
Amber Baylor, Staff Attorney
Prior to joining NDS in 2008, Amber was a trial attorney at Federal Defenders of San Diego, Inc. Amber graduated from New York University School of Law in 2006, where she participated in the Community Defender Clinic and the Comparative Criminal Justice Clinic. During law school Amber interned at NDS, as well as with the Indigenous Rights Division of the United Nations at Nairobi, Kenya, and BPI, a Chicago-based civil rights organization. 
Weldon Brewer, Staff Attorney
Weldon joined NDS in 1996. Before coming to NDS, Weldon worked for the Criminal Defense Division of the Legal Aid Society from 1972-1983 as a trial attorney, and for a period of time as an appeals attorney. From 1983-87, Weldon worked with the Law Office of Ramsey Clark, specializing in civil rights, criminal appeals, and international human rights. In 1990, Weldon joined Mid-Hudson Legal Services as the Managing Attorney, and became the Acting Director of Litigation in June of 1995, where he tried civil cases and supervised attorneys in the areas of housing, public benefits, disability, and family law. Weldon received his JD from Harvard Law School.
Elsie Chandler, Staff Attorney, Youth Law Project
Elsie Chandler, JD, PhD, has been a practicing attorney in New York for over twenty years and is the founding director of the Youth Law Project at NDS. This unique, interdisciplinary team of attorneys, law students, social workers, and investigators represents young people accused of major crimes and prosecuted as adults. Elsie received her JD from Rutgers School of Law; she also holds a PhD in clinical psychology, a MA in American history, and is a licensed psychologist. Elsie first joined NDS as a staff attorney in 1992. In 1995, she was recruited to found the Juvenile Offender Team at the Legal Aid Society's Criminal Defense Practice in Manhattan, a unit which she directed for three years. Elsie rejoined NDS in 2002, where she defends those accused of serious felonies, and created and directs our Youth Law Project. Prior to her work with NDS, Elsie served as a staff attorney in the Legal Aid Society's Juvenile Rights Division, a member of New York's 18b Homicide Panel, and an associate professor of forensic psychology in the graduate division of John Jay College of Criminal Justice. Recently, she co-taught an advanced colloquium, "Multidisciplinary Methods for Lawyering," at New York University School of Law with Professor Peggy Cooper Davis. Before her legal career, Elsie maintained a practice in clinical psychology, providing individual and group psychotherapy to adults and youth in a variety of private and institutional settings. In the late 1960's she was a public school teacher in New York City. Elsie began working in the Harlem community in 1964 as an activist with the civil rights and racial justice movements.
John Christie, Staff Attorney
John joined NDS in 2006 after graduating from Brooklyn Law School. While in law school, John interned at the Legal Aid Society's Criminal Defense Division, and at NDS where he was responsible for legal research and trial preparation on complex felony cases. John was awarded a Sparer Fellowship from Brooklyn Law School for his commitment to public interest law.
Felice Conte, Staff Attorney Felice graduated from Boston College Law School in 1995. After law school, Felice worked for several years at Court TV as a producer of live trial coverage. Thereafter, Felice became involved in documentary work, ultimately directing and producing "Dope Sick Love," an Emmy-nominated film for HBO's popular "America Undercover" series. Felice joined NDS in 2005.
Elizabeth Fischer, Equal Justice Works Fellow, Youth Law Project
Elizabeth came to NDS in 2008 as an Equal Justice Works Fellow, sponsored by the law firm of Latham & Watkins, LLP. Elizabeth received her JD from Harvard Law School in 2008. While at Harvard, Elizabeth was the co-executive director of the Prison Legal Assistance Project and a student attorney at the Criminal Justice Institute. During law school, Elizabeth interned at NDS, the Southern Center for Human Rights, and the Legal Assistance Centre in Windhoek, Namibia.
Kenneth Gilbert, Staff Attorney, Pre-Arrest Services
Kenn worked at NDS as a legal intern and investigator, before becoming a staff attorney in 1995. Kenn graduated from the University of Baltimore School of Law in 1994. During law school, Kenn was an editor on the Journal of Environmental Law and worked as a law clerk at the Baltimore City Public Defender Office. As a law student, Kenn also represented indigent clients charged with crimes through the Criminal Practice Clinic, and was chair of the Community Involvement Committee for the Black Law Students Association.
Justine Gonzalez, Investigator
Justine Gonzalez came to NDS in 2010. She received her BA in Sociology and Spanish from Smith College. Justine was born and raised in New York City and has close ties to the neighborhoods NDS serves.
Kristin Heavey, Staff Attorney
Kristin joined NDS in 2005, after graduating from Columbia Law School. During law school, Kristin was a legal intern at NDS, an articles editor for the Columbia Human Rights Law Review, and coordinated pro bono trips for Columbia law students to capital defense organizations throughout the country. Prior to law school, Kristin worked in administration and development for several nonprofit organizations.
Cyrus Joubin, Staff Attorney
Cyrus joined NDS in 2007. He is a 2006 graduate of Columbia Law School, where he participated in the Criminal Defense Clinic at NDS. During law school, Cyrus interned at the Office of the Federal Public Defender in the Eastern District of Virginia, and with the Honorable T.S. Ellis III of the Eastern District of Virginia.
Jonathan Marvinny, Staff Attorney
Jonathan joined NDS in 2009. Previously, Jonathan was a staff attorney at the Legal Aid Society in Brooklyn, as well as a staff attorney for three years at the Office of the Appellate Defender, where he litigated appeals in the Appellate Division, First Judicial Department, and the New York Court of Appeals. Jonathan graduated from New York University School of Law in 2004.
Annalisa Mirón, Staff Attorney
Prior to joining NDS in 2006, Annalisa was a staff attorney at the NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund (LDF). At LDF she helped organize the Race and Criminal Justice Reform Initiative, a year-long project aimed at developing litigation strategies to combat discrimination in the criminal justice system. Annalisa graduated from New York University School of Law in 2004. While in law school, Annalisa held legal internships at the Public Defender Service of the District of Columbia, the Brennan Center for Justice, and the Juvenile Justice Project of Louisiana.
Heather Mockeridge, Social Worker
Heather received her MSW from Hunter College School of Social Work, with a concentration in community organizing, and a research emphasis on social work within holistic criminal defense organizations. She joined the NDS staff in 2007, after serving as a social work intern from 2006-2007. Prior to entering Hunter, Heather was a full-time nanny in Manhattan and New Jersey, which gave her the opportunity to organize and advocate for domestic worker's rights. Heather is originally from San Antonio, Texas and earned her BA in American studies from the University of Texas at Austin. Eventually, Heather would like to return to the south to work as a mitigation specialist on federal and state death penalty cases.
Joanna Neufeld, Social Worker
Johanna came to NDS after graduating from Columbia University's School of Social Work in 2010, where she co-founded the Criminal Justice Caucus. As a social work student, Johanna worked at The Bridge, a psychiatric rehabilitation program, and at the Midtown Community Court in Manhattan.
Archana Prakash, Staff Attorney
Archana joined NDS in February of 2008 after working as a staff attorney at the Bronx Defenders for two-and-a-half years. Previously, Archana served as the Civil Rights Fellow at Cochran, Neufeld & Scheck, litigating high-impact wrongful conviction and police brutality cases, and clerked for the Honorable Myron Thompson in Montgomery, Alabama. Archana graduated from Columbia Law School in 2002, where she was awarded the Lowenstein Fellowship for her commitment to public service.
Shervin Rezaie, Staff Attorney Shervin Rezaie graduated from the Touro College Law Center, where he was the director of the Legal Education Access Program (LEAP). While in law school, Shervin also participated in the Judicial Clerkship Clinic as a student clerk for the Honorable Dorothy T. Eisenberg, and was also a 2007 Fellow in the Association of the Bar of the City of New York Minority Fellowship Program. Prior to law school Shervin worked as the general manager of a nonprofit, independent, listener-supported radio station in Boulder, Colorado.
Wilfredo Sta. Ana, Staff Attorney
Prior to joining NDS in 2005, Wilfredo spent the first four years of his legal career as a public defender for the Legal Aid Society's Criminal Defense Division in Manhattan. He then worked as a court attorney in both Manhattan and Bronx criminal courts. Wilfredo graduated from Brooklyn Law School in 1999, where he was awarded a Sparer Fellowship for his commitment to public interest law.
Seth Steed, Staff Attorney
Seth joined NDS in 2009, after serving as a legal intern in 2004. Working at NDS has a special significance for him, since he was born and raised in East Harlem. Seth received his BA from Swarthmore College, and his JD from Washington and Lee University School of Law. While in law school, Seth was a staff writer for the Washington and Lee Journal of Civil Rights and Social Justice, and a member of the John W. Davis Moot Court Executive Board. Seth also clerked for the Honorable Michael F. Urbanski in the Western District of Virginia, and worked in a legal clinic representing coal miners in Black Lung Benefits Act claims before the Department of Labor and the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. Following law school, he worked in private practice in Washington, D.C.
Valerie Strawn, Caseworker, Fatherhood Program
Valerie joined NDS in 2009. She received her BA in sociology and a MA in education from the State University at Albany. After receiving her master's degree, Valerie was a public school teacher in New York City for three years. She later joined the social services team at STRIVE, a nonprofit focused on job training, placement, and support for the chronically unemployed.
Michelle Villaseñor-Grant, Staff Attorney
Michelle came to NDS in 2005. From 2001 until 2005, Michelle was a staff attorney at Federal Defenders of San Diego, Inc., where she was lead trial attorney in over twenty federal trials. While at the Federal Defenders, Michelle also represented clients in appellate courts, including presenting oral arguments before the Ninth Circuit nine times. Michelle received her JD from the University of California Hastings School of Law in 2001.
Royce Wilder, Investigator
Royce joined NDS in 2007. He received his AA from the Borough of Manhattan Community College in 2006. Royce is a Harlem resident, and previously worked at Harlem Hospital.
Top of Page |Sitemap | Disclaimer
|
