ARCHCITY DEFENDERS - Key Persons
Alisha joined ArchCity Defenders in July 2017, and works as the Operations Associate. Prior to this role, she worked at ACD as an Executive Assistant and Receptionist/Intake Coordinator. Alisha is from St. Louis and has lived in North County for more than 20 years. While living in North County, she has witnessed how the police have targeted black people and the impact that has had on their ability to work, drive and provide for their families and this drew her to ACD.
Job Titles:
- Social Work Pilot Program Coordinator
Amanda Rae Gardner joined ArchCity Defenders in June of 2022 as the Community Collaborations Associate, anchoring the work of the We the Tenants and Defund. Reenvision. Transform. Campaigns. In her current role as the Social Work Pilot Program Coordinator, Amanda works with her clients to achieve the unmet needs that our criminal justice system punishes but does not address. She envisions a world where the insights and experiences of her clients help shape a new system of public safety free from punishment, incarceration, and surveillance. Prior to joining ArchCity Defenders, Amanda worked a plethora of previous roles at local non-profits, focused on housing and criminal justice advocacy.
Angelo was raised in St. Louis and joined ArchCity Defenders in June 2022 after completing his undergraduate degree in English, where he concentrated on literature from the African-American diaspora. In his role of Communications Fellow, he contributes to ACD's media and policy advocacy by applying his research, writing, and editing skills to a variety of storytelling projects that aim to expose the injustice of the criminal legal system and inspire true public safety.
Annie is thrilled to serve as Senior Policy Counsel with the Community Collaborations Team at Arch City Defenders. Prior to joining ACD, Annie served on the St. Louis Board of Aldermen from 2018-2023, working closely with people-centered coalitions to advance impactful legislation and working with constituents to improve their relationship with their local government and their lived experience in our city. Her legal career began working with families through the complicated legal processes of immigration in the US and she's still a strong supporter of the MICA Project in St. Louis. She's a 2018 Aspen-Rodel Fellow in Public Leadership, a 2020 NewDEAL Leader, and former member of Local Progress, but her political activism blossomed in Ferguson, on the streets of St. Louis, and on the steps of the City Justice Center. Her experiences in law, government, and public service have shown her that the mission of ArchCity and partner coalitions is more important than ever; she's excited to use her skills and experience with a trusted organization that truly impacts people's lives for the better in St. Louis.
Job Titles:
- Executive Director
- Executive Director of Arch
- Voting Member
Blake Strode is the Executive Director of ArchCity Defenders, a nonprofit civil rights law firm in St. Louis, Missouri providing holistic legal advocacy and combating the criminalization of poverty and state violence against poor people and people of color. Blake is a native of the St. Louis region and joined ArchCity as a Skadden Fellow and Staff Attorney following his graduation from Harvard Law School in 2015. Blake attended the University of Arkansas and majored in International Economics and Spanish.
Blake helped to establish the Civil Rights Litigation unit at ArchCity, which has brought challenges to a variety of unlawful and predatory practices including debtors' prisons, police misconduct, and inhumane jail conditions, among others. In the past few years, Blake and his colleagues have filed more than 50 civil rights cases in state and federal court, impacting upwards of 40,000 people in the St. Louis region. Blake also played a significant role in the class-action debtors' prison case against the City of Jennings, Missouri that reached final settlement in December 2016. The landmark case provides a blueprint for permanent legal reform in the region's courts and afforded monetary relief to hundreds of individuals who were jailed because of their inability to pay court debts.
As Executive Director, Blake manages ACD's growing and talented staff; explores new opportunities for advocacy and systemic litigation; communicates the work and mission of ACD to students, supporters, fellow advocates, and media; and works with the Board and leadership to set the strategic direction for the organization. He is responsible for making sure that the dedicated team at ACD has everything it needs to provide the best holistic advocacy possible for our clients.
Blake regularly speaks at conferences and panels throughout the country and has authored columns and essays for publication on issues of race, policing, and criminal justice. He and Kayla Reed (Director of Action St. Louis) co-host a podcast called "Under the Arch," which discusses the issues impacting community and the people working to change them. Blake's leadership has garnered several accolades including the 2020 Missouri Lawyers Media Legal Champion, Harvard Law School's Bellow-Charn Championship of Justice Emerging Leader Award in 2019 as well as the "Emerging Leaders Award by Focus St. Louis's What's Right with the Region."
Job Titles:
- Treasurer of the Board of Directors
Job Titles:
- Member / Attorney, Walker Commercial Law Group, LLC
Dom joined ArchCity Defenders in July 2020 as a Civil Advocate and Paralegal. Born and raised in Utah, Dom graduated from the University of Utah, and studied Political Science, Ethnic Studies, and Gender Studies. Prior to joining the ArchCity team, they served as an AmeriCorps Vista at Pro Bono Net from 2019-2020 developing a manual and project to connect rural, underserved, and marginalized communities to pro bono legal assistance. Dom's commitments to social and racial equity and legal advocacy brought them to ArchCity after having a formative intern experience there in 2018. Dom is passionate about ArchCity's commitments to community-informed movement activism and abolishing laws, mechanisms, and institutions that perpetuate marginalization, oppression, and violence in our communities.
Job Titles:
- Operations Manager
- Master 's in Public Policy Administration and Graduate Certificate in Nonprofit Management & Leadership, University of Missouri - St. Louis
Ericka joined in April 2018 and in her role she manages finances and Human Resources, in addition to supporting IT needs. She was drawn to this role because of her belief in ACD's mission and work. Before starting at ACD, she worked in the private sector building and managing databases and providing training and job support across the country. Ericka has spent over a decade providing development, program management, and strategic planning support to nonprofits throughout St. Louis.
Job Titles:
- Deputy Director of Community Collaborations
Inez Bordeaux joined ArchCity Defenders in July of 2019 as the Manager of Community Collaborations. She believes in ACD's holistic legal advocacy work and over the last 10 years, ACD's efforts have inspired her to do more. Inez was first was introduced to ACD in 2013, when she was a going through a challenging time and was targeted by the racist criminal legal system. Her background is in healthcare, and she worked as an LPN for 14 years. In 2018, she volunteered as an Organizer for the Close the Workhouse campaign. In her current role, Inez works with partner organizations, advocacy groups, organizers, and activist to build relationships that allow ACD to reach common goals of community well being.
Job Titles:
- Deputy Executive Director
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
- Member / Owner and Consultant, Drake Strategy Partners
Job Titles:
- Director of Partnerships
- Psychology
Jessica Estes joined ArchCity Defenders in January of 2022 as Director of Partnerships. She learned about ArchCity Defenders as a result of their landmark cases against municipal courts. Prior to joining the team here, Jessica worked in philanthropy. Notably, she was the former statewide organizer for Pro-Choice Missouri, formerly NARAL Pro-Choice Missouri. Jessica also worked in mental health care for over 10 years. In her role as Director of Partnerships, she will be leading ACD's efforts to build and sustain individual and institutional relationships.
Job Titles:
- Development Specialist
- Business Administration, Stevens Institute of Business & Arts
Jessica joined ACD as the Development Specialist in May of 2021. Jessica specializes in database management, reporting, and analysis and is responsible for managing ArchCity's donor database.
Prior to ACD Jessica was the Regional Development Specialist of the Missouri-Arkansas Red Cross Region from 2017 to 2021. She is a two-time nominee and the 2020 Division Winner of the Development Specialist of the year, and the Hustler awards. Jessica has more than ten years of experience in nonprofit development, database management, gift management, and donor relations.
Job Titles:
- Digital Media Strategist
- English and Communications, University of Missouri - St. Louis
Johnny joined ArchCity Defenders in December of 2022 because his values align with ACD's mission and vision. As the Digital Media Strategist, he collaborates with the Communications team on client story production, issue-based content, breaking news, and multimedia content. Previously, he was involved in editing, communications, and administrative work at two equity-focused research centers at Washington University. Johnny was born in St. Louis and grew up in California before returning.
Job Titles:
- Member / Organizer and Executive Director, Action STL
Job Titles:
- Staff Attorney & Expungement Coordinator
Kim joined ACD in September 2023 as a staff attorney in housing and civil practice and as the criminal record expungement coordinator.
She was born and raised in the St. Louis area and has been active in St. Louis's social justice community since she was 19 years old. Prior to ACD, Kim served as a housing, public benefits, and expungement staff attorney at Land of Lincoln Legal Aid in Alton, Illinois. Additionally, she has worked in various roles at non-profits, universities, state legislatures, and Congress.
Kim connected with the mission of ACD when she started out in casework at the same time ACD was a young non-profit in the late '00s. She has since focused on tailoring her education and professional development on providing holistic services to clients in need.
Job Titles:
- Managing Attorney, Housing & Civil Advocacy
- Marketing Management, University of Arkansas
Lee joined ACD in 2017 as a Direct Services Attorney focusing on civil-consumer law, landlord-tenant law, and municipal law. In 2020, he rose to the position of Senior Staff Attorney. His legal practice consists of assisting low-income, elderly, and disabled clients in addressing various legal housing needs including increasing access to affordable and federally-subsidized housing, preventing evictions, fighting against housing discrimination, and advocating for those currently experiencing homelessness. Lee also engages in extensive policy and media advocacy focusing on tenants' rights. As an expert in the area of sub-habitable housing, he has successfully argued on the issue before the Missouri Supreme Court, testified on legislation regarding habitability, and continues to give presentations on the issue throughout Missouri and the country.
In 2019, Lee received the Missouri Lawyers Media Legal Champion award.
Job Titles:
- Staff Attorney, Criminal & Municipal Defense
Job Titles:
- Managing Attorney, Civil Rights Litigation
Job Titles:
- Licensed Professional Counselor
- Social Services Manager
Born and raised in Southern Illinois, Monique made the move to St. Louis in 2016. Monique is a Licensed Professional Counselor in Missouri and Illinois. After graduating from SIUE, Monique provided therapy services, case management, and community support to adults with severe mental illness while working for a non-profit organization. Monique transitioned within that agency to provide therapy services and community support to children with incarcerated parents. Eventually moving to a private practice, she provided mandated therapy to individuals with specific legal offenses. In addition to that role, Monique provided services to individuals linked with DCFS and other contracting agencies. Monique believes in utilizing a trauma-informed evidence based approach when assisting her clients. It was through these professional and personal experiences, Monique ultimately pursued her desire to provide holistic care to marginalized individuals and communities. ACD aligned with Monique's professional and personal beliefs. She fundamentally believes in fighting against systemic oppression against people of color and those living in poverty. Monique became the Social Services Case Manager in January of 2022 and looks forward to applying her skills and adopting new ones through ACD!
Morgan joined ACD as a case manager with the social services team in June 2023 and was excited to work at an organization that fights against the criminalization of poverty and aligns with her values on abolition. Prior to that, she was a social work case management intern with ACD from August 2022 to May 2023. Morgan also interned at Keyway: Center for Diversion and Reentry in 2022, managed the Triton Pantry at UMSL from 2021 to 2022, and served as a peer mentor for at-risk students at Southeast Missouri State University from 2019-2021.
Job Titles:
- Senior Staff Attorney, Civil Rights Litigation
Prior to rejoining the Civil Litigation department at ArchCity Defenders in 2020, Nathaniel worked for a small litigation firm called Keane Law, where he gained jury trial experience and worked on class actions seeking environmental justice for residents living near the radioactive and toxic landfills in Bridgeton and the contaminated Coldwater Creek areas. Nathaniel's work with ACD's Civil Litigation department has focused on debtors' prison class actions against regional towns for their unconstitutional practices.
Job Titles:
- Community Collaborations Associate
Rachel Hurtado joined ACD in 2023 as the community collaborations associate. She supports efforts to build people power in St. Louis, including the We the Tenants, Peoples Plan, and Defund. Reenvision. Transform. campaigns. Originally from Oklahoma, Rachel moved to St. Louis to earn her MSW and fell in love with the city. She has a background in local policy work and community organizing on a range of issues, including immigration, housing, enviro justice, and sex worker rights. Rachel is passionate about harm reduction, abolitionist organizing, and building community through collective care practices.
Job Titles:
- Paralegal
- Paralegal Certificate, University of Washington
Randy joined ArchCity Defenders in November 2022 as a Paralegal and Civil Rights Advocate. Since his youth, he has been employed as a news editor, line cook, grocery clerk, and criminal defense paralegal, and he is excited to continue his career on the ArchCity team.
Job Titles:
- Psychology
- Staff Attorney, Criminal & Municipal Defense
Rudy Angulo joined ArchCity Defenders in August 2019 as a Staff Attorney with the Direct Representation team, representing clients on a variety of civil and municipal matters. He interned with ACD during his third year of law school and connected with the values and mission of ACD. Rudy would describe ArchCity Defenders as dedicated, passionate, and zealous.
Job Titles:
- Psychology and Political Science
- Staff Attorney, Housing & Civil Advocacy
Sarah joined ArchCity Defenders in July of 2020 as a Staff Attorney on the Direct Representation team. In this role, she provides holistic legal representation to clients in civil and municipal cases. Prior to joining ArchCity Defenders, Sarah focused on representing individuals in a variety of family law matters in the St. Louis area, including as an advocate for survivors of intimate partner violence.
Sarah Roberts is a St. Louis native who has been involved in nonprofit fundraising and organizing for over 10 years. Sarah joined ACD in October of 2021 as the Grant Writing Lead. She has previously held fundraising roles at various local nonprofits, including The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, PreventEd and most recently at the International Photography Hall of Fame. Sarah's commitment to social and racial justice attracted her to ACD, and she is passionate about their commitment to challenging state violence, racial injustice and the criminalization of poor people.
Job Titles:
- Intake Coordinator
- Receptionist
- Business and Administration, Fontbonne University
Sharon is a a native of St. Louis and joined ACD in April of 2019 and re-joined May 2023. Sharon currently processes phone calls and intake applications for services. Before ACD, she spent 11 years working for the federal government and 14 years at a mental health nonprofit.
Job Titles:
- Chairman of the Board of Directors
Job Titles:
- Special Litigation Counsel
Stephen Ryals rejoined ArchCity Defenders in October 2021 as Special Litigation Counsel. Prior to his current position, he worked at the Department of Justice for five years, specializing in systemic reform of police agencies. Ryals has practiced law for 37 years, primarily handling Section 1983 Civil Rights cases. He previously worked at ArchCity Defenders in 2015, helping to establish the Civil Rights Litigation unit.
Valerie joined ArchCity Defenders in May 2023 as the Executive Assistant. Prior to this role, Valerie worked as administrative assistant or office manager at various schools in the St. Louis area and at the United Way of Greater St. Louis in the Community Investment Division. Valerie was born in St. Louis at the former Homer G. Phillips Hospital, the current site of the Annie Malone Children's and Family Service Center, where she worked at their alternative school as administrative assistant to the principal. Valerie has lived in North St. Louis City all her life and is excited to join the team at ArchCity Defenders.
Job Titles:
- Managing Attorney, Criminal & Municipal Defense