Washington, DC (July 27, 2021) – Sixteen individuals were sworn in to serve on the Board of Directors of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) at the Association’s annual meeting, which was held on July 24. The sixteen board members below join those who are currently serving their terms on the NACDL Board of Directors.
Huda Ajlani Macri – Fort Lauderdale, FL
Huda Macri is an Assistant Federal Public Defender for the Southern District of Florida, where she focuses on all aspects of federal criminal law including trials, appellate, and post-conviction work. Prior to becoming an assistant Federal Public Defender, Macri was a solo practitioner based in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. Macri entered private practice after having served as an assistant public defender with the ward County Public Defender’s Office. Macri is a board-certified criminal defense attorney and previously served as President of the Broward Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers and served on the Board of Directors of the Florida Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (FACDL). Macri is currently Co-Chair of NACDL’s Immigration Committee and serves on the Budget, Membership, and Nominating Committees. She is also a member of the Defenses and the Element of Consent in Sexual Assault Prosecutions Task Forces. She received a certificate from the Gerry Spence Trial Lawyers College and earned her undergraduate degree at the University of South Florida and her law degree from Nova Southeastern University, Shepard Broad Law Center.
Benjamin Au – Los Angeles, CA
Benjamin Au received his B.A. from Duke University and his J.D. from Yale Law School. He is a partner at Durie Tangri, a litigation boutique with offices in San Francisco and Los Angeles, where he focuses on white collar criminal defense and complex civil litigation. Au has extensive experience in SEC and DOJ actions on topics ranging from fraud to FCPA to export controls. Au’s civil practice primarily focuses on the representation of technology-facing clients, from start-ups to some of the most well-known companies in the Silicon Valley, in matters involving trade secret misappropriation, breach of contract, and business torts. Au has successfully tried criminal and civil cases in California and federal courts and has briefed or argued appeals at every level. Au currently serves on NACDL’s White Collar Committee. He is an Appellate Lawyer Representative to the United States Court of Appeal to the Ninth Circuit, a member of the Yale Law School Association Executive Committee, and also serves on the board of 826LA, a non-profit that provides literacy and writing programming to underserved children in Los Angeles. He is the recipient of the ACLU of Southern California’s “First Amendment Award,” and is consistently recognized as a top attorney by regional and national publications.
Jonathan Brayman – Chicago, IL
Jonathan Brayman is a partner with Breen & Pugh where he focuses on state and federal criminal defense, Section 1983 civil rights actions, and asset forfeiture defense. Brayman has distinguished himself as both a trial and appellate lawyer. In his first year of practice, he helped obtain outright acquittals in his first jury trial (February 2011) and in his first murder trial (November 2011). Brayman has helped to create favorable precedent recognizing greater protections for citizens from unreasonable searches and seizures, as well as winning outright reversals and new trials for numerous clients leading to their release from prison. Brayman is currently Chair of the Young and New Lawyers Subcommittee of the Membership Committee and serves on the Fourth Amendment Advocacy Committee. In addition to his work with NACDL, Brayman currently serves on the Executive Committee of the Illinois Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, where he is the First Vice-President. He also serves on the Justice Council for Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law’s Center on Wrongful Convictions, the Illinois Supreme Court’s Commission on Access to Justice’s Forms Committee for Civil Asset Forfeiture, and is a member of the Chicago Inn of Court. He has been named a “Rising Star” by Super Lawyers and was profiled by Leading Lawyers in their inaugural publication of Emerging Lawyers. He received his B.A. from the University of Colorado and his J.D. from the University of Iowa College of Law.
Eric Davis – Houston, TX
Eric J. Davis is an Assistant Public Defender and Chief of the Felony Trial Division for the Harris County Public Defender’s Office where he supervises over 55 lawyers and 12 investigators, oversees training in the Felony Trial Division, and regularly defends and tries criminal cases, sitting first chair in multiple jury trials each year. As a criminal defense lawyer, Davis has successfully represented people accused of the most serious crimes and has tried over 100 cases in federal and state courts, ranging from capital murder to misdemeanor cases. He has also defended federal criminal cases in every district in the state of Texas, as well as federal district courts in Florida, Louisiana, and Illinois. He is one of only a handful of lawyers to secure multiple acquittals against the Federal Medicare Fraud Task Force. Davis currently serves on the staff of the Trial Lawyers College where he helps train lawyers across the country. Over the years he has received numerous awards. His willingness to help others led to him being awarded the Mentor of the Year Award in 2016 and 2020 by the Harris Country Criminal Lawyers Association. His efforts towards improving the criminal legal system also led to him receiving the President’s Award from the Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association in 2021. He frequently teaches at trainings throughout the nation for numerous different organizations and is always willing to share his knowledge. Davis regularly presents at CLE courses and is routinely one of the highest rated speakers. He was recognized in 2019 as one of the “Best of the Best” by NACDL for his CLE presentation on “Arguing and Defining Reasonable Doubt for Juries.” He received his B.A. from Howard University with honors and received his J.D. from Tulane University Law School with honors. He has served on the NACDL Board of Directors since 2020 and was appointed to serve on the executive committee for 2021-2022.
Nicole DeBorde Hochglaube – Houston, TX
Nicole Hochglaube is an experienced criminal defense attorney and trial lawyer handling state and federal criminal matters for high profile clients and private individuals at all phases from investigation through trial and post-conviction and parole. In private practice as a criminal defense lawyer for over two decades, her experience brings valuable knowledge of criminal law from both sides of the aisle allowing her to successfully solve her client’s problems in the most complex cases as well as the most basic. Hochglaube is currently Fifth Circuit Vice Chair of NACDL’s Amicus Committee, Vice Chair of the Membership Committee, serves on the Elections, White Collar Crime, Women in Criminal Defense Committees, and is a member of the Fourth Amendment Center Advisory Board and Task Force on Court Reopening. In addition to her work with NACDL, Hochglaube has served the criminal law bar in her capacity as the Houston Bar Association’s Criminal Law and Procedure Section Chair, current officer in the Texas Criminal Defense Lawyer’s Association and active member of the Criminal Defense Lawyers Project. Former President of the Harris County Criminal Lawyers Association and member Inns of Court, she enjoys the opportunity to server her fellow members of the bar through this leadership. She is also Co-Chair of the Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association’s Strike Force providing assistance and representation to criminal defense lawyers across the state facing persecution in the course of representation of the accused. She is frequently asked to provide legal analysis on the major television networks including CNN, Fox News, and MSNBC as well as on Law and Crime and Court TV. She received her undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Houston.
Adrian Lobo – Las Vegas, NV
Adrian Lobo is a solo practitioner in Las Vegas where she practices exclusively criminal defense in both state and federal court. She earned her Bachelor of Arts Degree from the University of Nevada Las Vegas and her Juris Doctorate from California Western School of Law. She has extensive trial experience ranging from misdemeanors to sexual assault to medically complex murder charges involving shaken baby syndrome. She has taught advanced trial skills and coached competitive trial teams at both California Western School of Law and UNLV Boyd School of Law. In 2016, she coached CWSL law students to second place in the Texas Young Lawyers Association National Competition. Lobo’s professional affiliations include the Clark County Bar Association, the Nevada Attorneys for Criminal Justice, and the Lawyers Club of San Diego. She is also a National Criminal Defense College Graduate and recipient of the Franny Forsman Award. Lobo serves as Vice Chair for NACDL’s Council of Affiliates and was elected to serve on the Board of Directors by the NACDL affiliates.
Lorna McClusky – Memphis, TN
Lorna McClusky is a partner at the Law Office of Massey McClusky McClusky & Fuchs where she focuses on state and federal criminal law, including work in federal courts, capital murder cases, forfeiture proceedings, and trial practice. McClusky is a Life Member of NACDL and has previously served on the Death Penalty, Forensic Science, Judicial, and Discovery Committees. She is a life member of the Tennessee Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers and has previously served on the Board CLE and Death Penalty Committee and is the organization's secretary. McClusky is a previous recipient of the Lionel R. Barrett, Jr. Award for Outstanding Work in the Death Penalty Arena and the Outstanding Service Award from the Tennessee Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. She received her B.A. from the University of Memphis and her J.D. from the Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law. McClusky was elected to serve on the Board of Directors by the NACDL affiliates.
Shazzie Naseem – Kansas City, MO
Shazzie Naseem is a partner at Berkowitz Oliver LLP where he focuses on federal criminal defense, including white collar criminal defense and internal investigations. Before entering private practice, he served as a lieutenant in the U.S. Navy’s Judge Advocate General’s Corps, where he served as defense counsel for officers and enlisted personnel in both administrative separation board proceedings and court-martial trials. Naseem serves on several Criminal Justice Act panels and is the elected Defender Services Advisory Group attorney representative for the 8th Circuit. Additionally, Naseem previously served as one of three Coordinating Discovery Attorneys (CDA) for the federal Defender Services Office for complex multidefendant cases prosecuted in U.S. district courts across the country. This position was established to help CJA attorneys cope with voluminous electronic discovery and he has lectured on this topic at numerous NACDL conferences. Naseem is currently Co-Chair of NACDL’s Task Force on Rule 16.1 Implementation, serves on the Membership and Technology Advisory Committees, and is a member of the Fourth Amendment Center Advisory Board and Task Force on Defenses. He received his B.A. from Truman State University and his J.D. from Notre Dame Law School.
C. Melissa "Missy" Owen – Charlotte, NC
C. Melissa Owen is a founding partner of Tin Fulton Walker & Owen. Owen’s practice areas include state and federal criminal defense, with a focus on white collar matters, financial crime, sex offense prosecutions, and Title IX representation. Owen has served NACDL in numerous capacities, currently as Co-Chair of the Women in Criminal Defense Committee, Co-Chair of the Zealous Defense of Sex Crimes CLE, a program Vice Chair in the CLE Institute, and a member of the Audit, Bylaws, Governance, Membership, and Title IX Committees. Owen is also active on numerous bar associations and community groups, including service on the Board of Governors of North Carolina Attorneys for Justice and the Ethics Committee at the North Carolina State Bar, which publishes Advisory Ethics Opinions for North Carolina attorneys. She received her undergraduate degree from Miami University in Ohio and her J.D. from Duquesne University School of Law in Pittsburgh.
Robert Patillo – Atlanta, GA
Robert Patillo is a solo criminal defense practitioner based in Atlanta, Georgia. His practice focuses on major felonies, particularly for youthful offenders from underserved communities. As the Executive Director of the Rainbow PUSH Coalition's Peachtree St. Project, he works on issues of racial justice and civil rights alongside Rev. Jesse Jackson. He previously worked as a political strategist for campaigns on the local, state, and national level. Patillo has served on the NACDL Board for the past four years and is a member of the Membership and Diversity Committees. Patillo has moderated multiple NACDL webinars on criminal justice reform, as well as issues of race endemic in our courts. He is a graduate of Clark Atlanta University and Chicago-Kent College of Law.
Sonya Pfeiffer – Charlotte, NC
Sonya Pfeiffer is a partner with Rudolf Widenhouse in Charlotte, North Carolina, where she represents clients in white collar federal criminal cases, wrongful conviction and civil rights cases, and serious state-court criminal cases. Pfeiffer joined the firm after working in the business litigation division of Womble, Carlyle, Sandridge and Rice, where she was involved with both civil and criminal cases in the firm’s Charlotte office. Pfeiffer focused her legal work on medical malpractice and campaign-finance related criminal litigation. She began her legal career in the Mecklenburg County Public Defender’s Office, where she served in both the Misdemeanor and Felony Drug Unit. Pfeiffer holds leadership positions in the North Carolina Advocates for Justice, the North Carolina State Bar Association and the Mecklenburg County Bar Association. She is also a member of the Bar in Washington, D.C. and Massachusetts, and is licensed to practice in all federal districts in North Carolina and before the Supreme Court of the United States. In addition to her legal practice, Pfeiffer co-hosts the Webby-award winning podcast Abuse of Power, which focuses on injustice within the criminal legal system. In addition to her legal practice, Pfeiffer co-hosts the Webby-award winning podcast Abuse of Power, which focuses on injustice within the criminal legal system. Pfeiffer has served as a member of NACDL’s Board of Directors for the past three years, and is a member of the Membership Committee, the Technology Committee, and the Women in Criminal Defense Committee. She received her B.S from Ohio University and her J.D. from the University of North Carolina.
Gabriel Reyes – Dallas, TX
Gabriel Reyes is based in Dallas, Texas, where he has a state and federal criminal defense practice. Gabriel is admitted to practice in Texas and New York, as well as in the U.S. Supreme Court, the Fifth Circuit and several district courts. He serves on the CJA panels for the Northern District of Texas and the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. Prior to establishing his private practice, Gabriel served as an assistant federal defender in the Northern and Western Districts of Texas. Gabriel has been a frequent attendee at NACDL programs, and he has capitalized on his skills as a native Spanish speaker to participate in a training program for trial lawyers in Argentina through his work with the Instituto de Estudios Comparados en Ciencias Penales y Socialies (INECIP). In 2020, the Dallas Bar Association presented him the Jo Anna Moreland Outstanding Committee Award for his work executing CLE programs. And in 2020 he was also named a Texas Bar Foundation Fellow, an award given to only one-third of one percent of lawyers in the state every year. Gabriel serves as a Vice Chair of NACDL’s Public Defense Committee and frequently contributes to The Champion magazine. Gabriel received his undergraduate degree from Colby College and his law degree from Columbia Law School.
Carmen Roe – Houston, TX
Carmen Roe operates her own law firm in Houston, Texas where she specializes in criminal defense, criminal appeals, and post-conviction writs in both state and federal court. Roe is Board Certified in Criminal Appeals by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. She serves as a Board of Director for the State Bar of Texas, District 4, Place 5, and the Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association (TCDLA). She is a past president of the Harris County Criminal Lawyers Association (HCCLA), the largest local criminal defense bar in the country. Roe was named a 2014, 2015, 2016 Texas Super Lawyer Rising Star, and a 2016- 2021 Texas Super Lawyer and a Best Lawyer in America 2021 and 2022. In 2015, she was selected as a Texas Bar Fellow. In her spare time, she serves as a legal analyst (the only female analyst in the market) for KHOU in Houston Texas and is a frequent guest on CourtTV. Roe has been a member of NACDL since 2009. She received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Houston and her J.D. from St. Mary’s University School of Law.
Justin Rosas – Medford, OR
Justin Rosas runs the Law Office of Justin Rosas, a firm focused on state and federal criminal defense in Southern Oregon. He began his legal career at Southern Oregon Public Defender, and was later a board member of Los Abogados, a public defense consortium. Rosas founded Lawyers for Justice, a local group of attorneys and activists working to promote social and racial justice in the local legal system. He has served as Faculty for Oregon Trial Skills College (OCDLA), as Chair of the State Professional Responsibility Committee, and is a member the of NACDL Membership and Diversity Committees. Rosas received his undergraduate degree from the University of Kentucky, his M.A. from Webster University, and his J.D. from the University of Kentucky College of Law.
Tony Thedford – Chicago, IL
Tony V. Thedford is a career-long criminal defense attorney who is now at Thedford Garber Law, a Chicago criminal defense and civil rights firm. Thedford began his legal career as a Cook County public defender, where he served for eight years before starting his own law practice. He has extensive state and federal criminal defense experience as well as experience representing plaintiffs in civil rights litigation. He served as the director of trial advocacy under Dean Andrea Lyon at Valparaiso School of Law and serves on the CJA panel for the Northern District of Illinois. He has been active in numerous bar groups and is a Past President of the Illinois Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. He is a member of the Board of Directors for the Illinois Prison Project, an organization that advocates for early release for hundreds of incarcerated individuals and provides transition and re-integration assistance for those who are released. He has served on NACDL’s Membership Committee, and as a co-chair of the Race Matters Seminar series in 2020 and 2021. Thedford received his undergraduate degree from Southern College and his law degree from the University of Alabama School of Law.
Ian Wallach – Los Angeles, CA
Ian Wallach practices law in Los Angeles at the Law Office of Ian Wallach, P.C. His practice is substantially devoted to criminal defense, with much of it involving the representation of indigent accused persons through court appointment. He also devotes substantial time to providing pro bono representation. Wallach has worked in numerous practice settings, including serving as a deputy public defender in Los Angeles County and as a law clerk in the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, where he participated in drafting the indictment of Slobodan Milosevic. He was the first lawyer (along with Jason Feldman) to get a substantial judgement against the United States for failing to protect an inmate from Valley Fever, and successfully argued the seminal case of Edison v. United States before the 9th Circuit. Wallach is admitted to practice in New York, Colorado and California, the U.S. Supreme Court, the Second and Ninth Circuit Courts of Appeal, and numerous districts courts. He is an NACDL Life Member, and has served as a member of the Corrections Committee, the Membership Committee, and a co-chair of the annual “Defending Modern Drug Crimes” seminar. Wallach received his undergraduate degree from the University of Oregon and his law degree from the University of California, Hastings College of Law.
Contacts
Kate Holden, NACDL Public Affairs and Communications Associate, (202) 465-7624 or kholden@nacdl.org
The National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers is the preeminent organization advancing the mission of the criminal defense bar to ensure justice and due process for persons accused of crime or wrongdoing. A professional bar association founded in 1958, NACDL's many thousands of direct members in 28 countries – and 90 state, provincial and local affiliate organizations totaling up to 40,000 attorneys – include private criminal defense lawyers, public defenders, military defense counsel, law professors and judges committed to preserving fairness and promoting a rational and humane criminal legal system.
