Staff & Board

PLSE Staff

Taylor Pacheco

Taylor Pacheco

Executive Director

Taylor first joined the PLSE team in 2019 as a Staff Attorney. She was promoted to the role of Deputy Executive Director in 2021, and rejoined the team in 2024 as Executive Director. Most recently she served as the Associate Director of Public Interest Fellowships and Government Careers at the University of Pennsylvania Law School. She is a 2016 graduate of Penn Law where she was Senior Editor of the Journal of Law and Social Change, an Edward V. Sparer Public Interest Summer Fellow, a Leo Model Summer Fellow, and a student volunteer with the Criminal Records Expungement Clinic run in partnership with PLSE. Her career after law school included positions with the New Jersey Office of the Public Defender and the Support Center for Child Advocates. She is a member of the Pennsylvania Bar Association and currently serves as co-chair of the Legal Services to the Public Committee, in addition to serving as a board member of the Defenders Association of Philadelphia. Fluent in Spanish, Taylor is barred in Pennsylvania, New York, and New Jersey. She went to law school to devote her career to undoing the harms of mass incarceration and the criminal legal system perpetuated on low-income communities and communities of color and she believes deeply that no one is the worst thing they've ever done.

PLSE

Don Berliner

Information Technology Director

Don started out as a volunteer with PLSE in 2018, later assuming responsibility for virtually all of PLSE’s technical infrastructure including the Salesforce, Microsoft, and Google platforms as well as security, confidentiality, backup of all data and meta-data, and user technical support and strategic consulting with staff as needed. Don graduated from MIT with a BS in Applied Mathematics and got his graduate education at University of Pennsylvania with MS degrees in Electrical Engineering and Systems Engineering/Operations Research. After his education he has worked in technology-related positions throughout his professional career, with employment at a wide variety of organizations, from multi-national firms, small businesses, sole proprietorship, government, and non-profits, and in a wide variety of industries, e.g., food, pharmaceuticals, finance, energy conservation, and social equity.

photo of Kristen Cherry

Kristen Cherry

Pro Bono Coordinator

Kristen (she/her) joined PLSE in November 2022 from Philadelphia Legal Assistance, where she was the Family Court Based Paralegal and assisted pro se litigants with filing child custody paperwork in family court. Prior to that, Kristen worked at a domestic violence & sexual assault center in her hometown of Louisville, Kentucky. There she uncovered her passion for legal services after she was able to act as an advocate for petitioners seeking protection orders. Kristen got her Bachelor’s degree in Political Science and Near Eastern Languages & Cultures from Indiana University and completed a Master’s in Middle Eastern Politics at SOAS University of London. Kristen’s work is driven by her opposition to state violence, structural violence, and interpersonal violence, and her commitment to supporting the marginalized communities who are most impacted.

Sarah Coyle, Esq.

Managing Attorney

Sarah joined PLSE in September 2019 from Legal Aid of Southeastern Pennsylvania (LASP), where she had been a staff attorney for over two years and ran the Media office. After receiving her JD in 2016 from Savannah Law School, she worked in a private firm concentrating in criminal defense before joining LASP, where she developed a program assisting victims of domestic/sexual violence under a program funded by the Victims Of Crime Act (VOCA). While at law school, she had internships in the Women’s Law Project here in Philadelphia, and in both Georgia Legal Services and the Savannah Justice Law Center, where she first worked on expunging criminal records and helping clients obtain identification cards. Sarah is barred in New Jersey as well as Pennsylvania.

Zaria Dobson

Zaria Dobson

Legal Administrative Assistant

Zaria joined PLSE in September 2021 through Drexel’s co-op program and continued after its conclusion. Zaria assists PLSE in many aspects, including maintaining client information and aiding in paralegal services. With a keen eye for detail and strong organizational skills, she plays a vital role in streamlining office operations and ensuring that all documentation is accurate and up to date. Zaria is currently working on her Bachelor of Science in Marketing with a minor in International Economics. She also plans on attending law school using the knowledge and experience she has gained over the years working with PLSE to guide her.

Matt Dugan

Matt Dugan

Director, Pardon Project

Matt brings over 16 years of experience in public defense and legal education to PLSE. As the former Director and Chief Deputy Director at the Allegheny County Office of the Public Defender, he led a team of 135 employees, overseeing strategic planning and budget management to ensure the best possible outcomes for his indigent clients. Additionally, Matt managed large-scale projects in Allegheny County that worked to guarantee counsel at Preliminary Arraignments and bring expungement services to thousands of eligible clients.</br></br> Matt has also served as an Adjunct Professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, where he developed the State Criminal Defense Practicum, and as a Committee Member on the Pennsylvania Criminal Procedural Rules Committee. Matt has spent his career working and fighting to ensure the criminal justice system works for all members of our community.

Jeffrey Eberly

Chief Financial Officer

Jeff Eberly started volunteering with PLSE in October 2017 as the Chief Financial Officer. His finance career spans over 25 years primarily working in higher education and non-profit institutions. During the last 12 years, he has led and managed numerous financial and operational functions within those institutions. Today he is the Executive Director, Fiscal Operations, for the Gene Therapy Program of the University of Pennsylvania. He received his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a major in Financial Accounting from Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania and his Master’s in Business Administration from Drexel University through its executive MBA program.

LaShonda Ellis

Business Manager

LaShonda Ellis joined PLSE in August 2022 as Business Manager. Born and raised in Philadelphia, LaShonda completed her undergraduate studies in finance from Drexel University and MBA from Saint Joseph’s University. Prior to joining PLSE LaShonda has had extensive experience leading Alternative Investments teams at SEI and account management at Alliance Bernstein in NYC. Her personal goals align with those of PLSE in “expanding opportunities to empower communities”. Serving and supporting marginalized populations have always been key drivers for her through volunteerism and philanthropic activities.

Rufus Farmer

Pardon Client Specialist

Rufus (he/him) joined PLSE as a student intern in 2022 and will earn a bachelor’s degree in social work from West Chester University in 2023. He works with clients during the pardon process and performs various administrative tasks. Before joining West Chester University he completed the Behavioral Health and Human Services program at Community College of Philadelphia, earning an Associate in Applied Sciences degree. Since 2017 Rufus has been a member of Food Not Bombs, a grassroots organization that distributes free food in Philadelphia every week. He is a brother of three siblings, a disgruntled Sixers fan, an avid reader, and a fan of video games made in the ‘90s.

Morgan Gallagher

Morgan Gallagher

Lead Legal Administrative Assistant

Morgan joined PLSE in April 2022 as a co-op from Drexel University. Morgan has always had a strong interest in decarceration efforts in Philadelphia which she has built upon during her time at PLSE. Morgan stayed on the team after her co-op and has made many improvements to the administrative procedures. She also helps manage the co-op system since April 2024 along with our Managing Attorney. Morgan graduated Drexel in 2024 with a degree in Philosophy, Politics, Economics and with minors in Sociology and Legal Studies. She plans on attending law school in the near future to continue this work.

Zach Keasling

Zach Keasling

Grant Consultant

Zach brings unconditional love and empathy to his work, drawing deeply from his own past experiences. With a vision of true equity, Zach strives to be a peacemaker in the world, building bridges of understanding one person and one interaction at a time. His greatest joy is serving others, helping them find hope, and guiding them toward the peace he discovered after enduring some of life’s darkest moments when hope and peace seemed out of reach. Representing PLSE and its values has allowed Zach to contribute countless volunteer hours, strengthening the statewide PLSE Pardon Project and the PPSC, where he serves as an executive committee member. More recently, now working for PLSE as a Grant Consultant, he has continued to advance PLSE’s efforts in Philadelphia and across the Commonwealth. All of his contributions are grounded in the hard-earned wisdom and hope from his personal journey.

Patrick Jackson Keough

Program Director

Patrick joined PLSE from Bebashi – Transition to Hope, where he managed all administrative and operational aspects of its hunger relief programs. He is a 2015 graduate of Drew University where he was a Civic Scholar. He began his career in Philadelphia as an Episcopal Service Corps Fellow, serving at St. Marks Church, Locust Street where, among other things, he introduced models of trauma-informed care and non-prerequisite service to the parish’s long established community engagement programs. Along the way, he has continuously worked with formerly incarcerated people.

PLSE

Adja Kiende

Legal Administrative Assistant

Adja joined the PLSE team in October 2022. She has worked as a legal administrative assistant while attending Temple University as a Political Science major. Adja assists in managing client information, paperwork, and other administrative duties. Adja is set to graduate from Temple University in spring 2025 and plans to attend law school within the near future. Adja hopes to use her valuable experience at PLSE to aid her future in law.

Andrea Lindsay, MSW

Director of Strategic Initiatives

Andrea (she/her) is Director of Strategic Initiatives at Philadelphia Lawyers for Social Equity (PLSE). In this role, she works collaboratively with staff and community partners to develop and implement PLSE’s strategic priorities and special projects. She is the author of PLSE’s February 2021 report “Life Without Parole for Second-Degree Murder in Pennsylvania: An Objective Assessment of Sentencing” and co-author of PLSE’s April 2021 follow-up investigation into racial disparities in the same population. A graduate of the University of Chicago, Andrea previously worked as a mitigation specialist and received her Master of Social Work degree from the School of Social Policy & Practice at the University of Pennsylvania, where she specialized in systems-level transformation.

Moriah Mendicino

Equal Justice Works Fellow Attorney

After graduating from the University of Colorado, Moriah accepted a job in education and relocated to Philadelphia where she taught middle and high school while earning her Master of Science in Education from the University of Pennsylvania. After teaching for four years, Moriah enrolled in Rutgers Law School – Camden where she served as a court-appointed mediator, co-lead of the Street Law student organization, University Senator and Senior Managing Editor of Rutgers Race and the Law Review. She first joined PLSE as a legal intern in 2021 and returned in the fall of 2022 as an Equal Justice Works Fellow sponsored by Comcast and Duane Morris LLP.

Caitlin Mininger, Esq.

Staff Attorney

Caitlin joined PLSE in December 2023 from the Public Defender’s Office of Lebanon County, Pennsylvania. A 2020 graduate of Drexel University Thomas R. Kline School of Law, Caitlin gravitated to public interest and criminal law early in her legal career. While in law school, she volunteered for a semester with the Pennsylvania Innocence Project and worked as a certified legal intern for the Defender Association of Philadelphia from late spring 2019 to early spring 2020, first in the summer intern program and then in Drexel’s Criminal Litigation Field Clinic. She is excited to return to serve the Philadelphia community and support PLSE’s mission of building a more just legal system.

PLSE

Shawn Robinson

Office Administrator

Shawn joined PLSE as Office Administrator in April of 2024 bringing four years of experience at the Frick Pittsburgh Museums and Gardens as a Visitor Services lead. Shawn graduated from Duquesne University in 2019 with a degree in History and Political Science. During this time, they gained experience in advocacy and research, working on campaigns for worker’s rights, opposing solitary detention at Allegheny County Jail, and to outlaw discrimination against LGBTQ+ individuals in the foster care system. Shawn is excited to continue working towards a just and fairer future at PLSE. At home, Shawn loves playing with their cat Shoveler and reading fantasy novels.

Charles Simmons

Charles Simmons

Community Engagement Coordinator

Charles brings to PLSE his bachelor’s degree in psychology from Drexel University and his post-grad year of service as a clinical researcher and publications assistant in that field. Most recently, he spent a year working for a large international employment screening and compliance corporation obtaining and analyzing criminal court records, and another year working within the First Judicial District’s Office of Judicial Records assisting individuals seeking expungements and pardons. In a new role for PLSE, Charles splits his time between helping organize and run community clinics in Philadelphia and leading statewide outreach and organizing efforts with individuals with lived experience and the organizations that serve them.

Victor Sotelo

Paralegal

Victor joined PLSE in January 2022 as a full-time paralegal. He brings an abundance of experience working as a court clerk in both Colorado and Pennsylvania courts for over four years. During this time, he witnessed firsthand the difficulties of living with a conviction and the value of second chances. In Colorado, he served on the board for the county’s Professional Development Program and as a volunteer judge for the Colorado Bar Association High School Mock Trial Competition. As an immigrant from Mexico, he hopes to reach the Latino/a community and break down barriers to justice. Victor is currently completing his associate’s degree and plans to continue his education with a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice. He is excited to join the PLSE team to help advocate for everyone who has been negatively affected by the criminal legal system.

Randee Wismer

Pro Bono Assistant

Randee joined PLSE in the fall of 2019 through Drexel ’s co-op program and continued on after its conclusion due to her dedication to the organization and to the re-entry community, as well her interests in civic engagement and outreach. Randee assists with PLSE’s out-of-county record requests in addition to other administrative tasks essential to the success of PLSE’s programs. Randee is a graduate of Drexel University where she studied English and is considering a career in law.

Robin Wynne

Senior Paralegal

Robin Wynne joined PLSE in May 2019 as our first full-time paralegal. She is a graduate of the Community College of Philadelphia, receiving her Associate of Applied Science degree in Paralegal Studies with Highest Honors, and a recipient of the Paralegal Studies Award. It was at CCP that she participated in an expungement clinic hosted by the Defender Association, and first learned about the difference that expungements can make in people’s lives. Before receiving her degree, she worked with Children’s Choice, Inc., as a case aid. She is an active member of the Mount Carmel Baptist Church. Keenly aware of the social structures that support and promote racial and income-based disparities in the law, she believes everyone is entitled to a second chance.


Board Members

Ryan Allen Hancock, Esq.

Board Chair

Ryan Hancock is Of Counsel and chair of Willig, Williams & Davidson’s Employment Group where he counsels and represents clients in all matters related to their employment. Prior to joining Willig, Williams & Davidson, he served as Assistant Chief Counsel with the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission (PHRC), the Commonwealth’s civil rights enforcement agency. While there, he successfully litigated a wide range of discrimination matters including but not limited to claims of: sexual orientation, religious accommodation, disability, race, sex and denial of employment based on a criminal record. Mr. Hancock is the author of The Double Bind: Obstacles to Employment and Resources for Survivors of the Criminal Justice System, 15 U. Pa. J.L. & Soc. Change 515 2011-2012 and the principal author of the PHRC policy entitled Disparate Impact Discrimination Implications Related to a Denial of Employment Based on a Criminal Record. Ryan received his law degree from Rutgers School of Law and clerked in Camden County Superior Court, Criminal Division, for the Honorable David G. Eynon. He was one of PLSE’s co-founders and has served on the Board ever since.

Glenn D. Barnes, Esq.

Board Vice Chair

Glenn Barnes has been volunteering with PLSE in various capacities since 2017. Receiving his JD in 1985, he began his legal practice in Boston as a commercial trial attorney, then moved to Philadelphia ten years later, thereafter practicing in the areas of business and employment law, personal injury and estate law. He began teaching undergraduate legal studies as an adjunct at Peirce College in May 2003, became a member of the full-time faculty in 2005, and a full professor in 2010, and continued to teach and mentor students until his retirement in 2016. For his unstinting commitment to his students, for whom a college education would make all the difference, he was presented with the faculty’s highest honor, the Hamilton Award for Academic Excellence and Integrity. Among other accomplishments, he is an award-winning poet and was a Pew Fellowship in the Arts finalist. His passion for social equity continues to be fueled by his experiences with apartheid in South Africa while a high school exchange student in 1972-73. His support for PLSE is a part of his continuing effort to make an “outraged difference” in our too often unjust world.

Nicole Hunt

Board Secretary

Nicole Hunt is the President of UNITEHERE LOCAL 634, a union that represents over 2,000 public sector school cafeteria employees and student climate staff working for the School District of Philadelphia. Daughter of a devoted member of 1199C, Nicole began her public service in the School District in 2001 as a food service worker and volunteering in the Union’s offices where she rose to become the office manager. She was elected Secretary-Treasurer of Union 634 in 2010 and its President in 2017. In 2013, she was one of the eight protesters who fasted in front of Governor Corbett’s office seeking full funding for our public schools. Raising two sons, she has seen how easy it is for young black males to be arrested in what she has called “the school-to-prison pipeline”, and how arrests and convictions have severely limited the life choices of her sons’ friends who now, in their mid-20s, “have had all hope taken from them of being allowed to do what they are capable of doing.” She is passionate about helping people obtain expungements and pardons so that they get the second chances they have earned through their good works.

Jeffrey N. Brown

Board Treasurer

A fourth-generation grocer, Jeff Brown is the founder, President & CEO of Brown’s Super Stores, Inc., a network of 11 ShopRite and 2 Fresh Grocer Supermarkets in the greater Philadelphia area. The company estimates that it employs 500 returning citizens, often providing them with their first jobs after being released from prison. He started this practice in 2008, making him one of the very first business leaders to act on the fact that it makes sense for society to employ former inmates so they can remain crime-free and contribute to the economy. This is not his only, or even his first, “win-win” business innovation with immense benefits for impoverished communities: he was the first to open a major grocery store in a low-income underserved neighborhood, often referred to as a food desert, in Philadelphia (in 2004), and he now operates seven of them. In recognition of his leadership in solving the “food desert” crisis, he was a guest of First Lady Michele Obama at President Obama’s first State of the Union address in 2010; and he was named 2014 Ernst and Young Social Entrepreneur of the Year for his innovative work of meeting the needs of impoverished communities through holistic supermarket hubs. In addition to many other public service activities, Jeff chairs the Pennsylvania Workforce Development Board and the Philadelphia Youth Network, and is a member of the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia Corporate Council. He is also the founder and chair of Uplift Solutions, a non-profit working to create sustainable access to healthy and affordable food, nutrition education, health care and workforce development for returning citizens to obtain opportunities in the food industry, all for underserved communities nationally.

Rev. Leslie Callahan.

Rev. Callahan has been Pastor of St. Paul’s Baptist Church at 10th & Wallace Streets, a large and diverse congregation in North Philadelphia, since 2009. When the coronavirus hit in 2020, she was among the first to transition her church and pastoral care services from face-to-face to virtual, while, like other working parents, trying to educate her seven-year-old first grader at the kitchen table. Rev. Callahan earned her Bachelor of Arts in Religion from Harvard University/Radcliffe, her Masters of Divinity from Union Theological Seminary in New York, and her Doctor of Philosophy degree in Religion from Princeton University, and for a time, was a member of the faculty of the University of Pennsylvania as assistant professor of religious studies. Rev. Callahan currently serves as a Commissioner for the Philadelphia Housing Authority and is a member of POWER (Philadelphians Organized to Witness Empower and Rebuild).

Evan Figueroa-Vargas

Evan Figueroa-Vargas, a native of Puerto Rico, has been a Philadelphian since 1987. A Certified Recovery Specialist and a National Certified Peer Specialist, he is an Employment Systems Program Analyst with the City of Philadelphia’s Department of Behavioral Health & Intellectual disability Services. His personal experience with the criminal justice system resulted from having been prescribed an opioid painkiller after he was injured in a motorcycle accident, which led to addiction, crime, four convictions, and several years in prison; and he is now an applicant for a pardon. Evan has volunteered for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and the IBX Foundation’s Someone You Know Campaign. His exemplary work in the community has been featured in news outlets including WHYY, ABC6, Billy Penn, and Philadelphia Magazine. He is a graduate of Community College of Philadelphia and Eastern University, and is currently a graduate student at West Chester University where he is pursuing his Masters in Social Work. He has been a leading member of PLSE’s Pardon Project Steering Committee since joining it in June 2019.

Charles Gibbs

Charles Gibbs is a West Philadelphia native and attorney. A Member of McMonagle, Perri, McHugh, Mischak & Davis, Charles focuses his practice on criminal defense, family law, and election and municipal law matters. A prominent trial attorney with a devotion to public service, Mr. Gibbs is a past president of the Barristers’ Association of Philadelphia, the largest association of African American attorneys in Pennsylvania. Additionally, he is the co-chair of the City Policy Committee of the Philadelphia Bar Association. In 2023 Charles was named a Pennsylvania Super Lawyer and received the Barristers’ Association of Philadelphia J. Austin Norris Award. He is a graduate of West Catholic High School, received his B.A. from Temple University and his J.D. from Widener University School of Law. He resides in East Oak Lane and is the husband of the Hon. Monica N. Gibbs and proud father of Charleston and Robinson.

Kathleen (Kathy) Lee

A resident of Philadelphia, Lee is a retired veteran History and English teacher with the School District of Philadelphia. She also served as director of the first middle school YDSLCs (Youth Driven Service-Learning Centers,) in the country, located in Turner Middle School and her second at the School of the Future. Lee also served as Master Service-Learning Educator for the Docent Training Program for the Belmont Mansion Underground Railroad Museum and helped fund for six years. Lee has her BA from the University of Pennsylvania, her Masters in Education from Temple University.

Ana Pujols McKee, M.D.

Ana McKee is the executive vice president and chief medical officer of The Joint Commission, which evaluates and accredits more than 22,000 health care organizations and programs in the United States. Dr. McKee focuses on and develops policies and strategies for promoting patient safety and quality improvement in health care, and, among other things, provides clinical guidance and support to the Commission’s Center for Transforming Healthcare. Before joining Commission in February 2011, Dr. McKee served as chief medical officer and associate executive director at Penn Presbyterian Medical Center, University of Pennsylvania Health System, and clinical associate professor of medicine at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. She also served as medical director for the Philadelphia Health Department’s ambulatory network. She received her bachelor’s degree in psychology fromf the State University of New York at Binghamton and her medical degree from Hahnemann Medical College and Hospital in Philadelphia. Dr. McKee was named as one of Modern Healthcare’s Top 25 Minority Executives in Healthcare in both 2020 and 2014.

Josie Reed

Josie Reed is a lifelong Philadelphia resident with a deep desire to help people in need. This desire springs from her experiences rising from humble beginnings and overcoming adversity to create a better future for herself and her family. That pathway includes successfully obtaining, by herself, a pardon from Governor Tom Wolf for a crime she committed when she was a young woman. Free of the record that once haunted her, Josie has a fulfilling position with Campbell’s Soup Company and has completed her degree in Business Administration Concentration in Management from Peirce College of Philadelphia. After raising her own two children and sending them off to college, she has decided to become a foster parent to provide a loving home for kids caught in the child welfare system. She also volunteers at the South Jersey Food Bank through her employer and is a member of the Women’s Of Campbell which advocates for women of all races. She intends to use her knowledge and experience to help people facing the same barriers that she has, and to one day create her own nonprofit organization focused on helping women with the unique challenges they face when dealing with a criminal record. She hopes that her journey will serve as inspiration that if she can overcome her record, anyone can.

Jeffrey N. Rosenthal, Esq.

Jeffrey N. Rosenthal began his relationship with PLSE in 2021, when he organized his law firm’s first Pardon Clinic; he has organized additional clinics, and personally served as a Pardon Coach to multiple applicants, since then. He is a Partner at Blank Rome LLP, where he has extensive experience in high-stakes corporate and commercial litigation defending privacy and consumer protection class actions. For over ten years, Jeffrey has regularly written the Cyberlaw column for The Legal Intelligencer, wherein he explores issues related to computing and the law. In addition to his work with PLSE, Jeffrey handles several pro bono cases each year. He was recognized by Blank Rome with its Pro Bono Hero Award in 2011 and serves as a member of the Firm’s Philadelphia Pro Bono Coordinating Committee. He has also served on the Board of Directors for Community Legal Services since 2016 and was elected to serve a three-year term on the Board of Governors for the Philadelphia Bar Association. He received a B.S., with distinction, from The Pennsylvania State University, and a J.D., cum laude, from Syracuse University College of Law. He is a regular volunteer with the United Way of Southeastern PA and the Senior Law Center.

Rev. Dr. Michelle Anne Simmons

Rev. Dr. Michelle Anne Simmons is the Founder and CEO of Why Not Prosper, a community-based organization in Germantown that supports women coming out of prison and one of PLSE’s first Pardon Hubs. She herself was formerly incarcerated and is a recovering addict. In 2008, Rev. Michelle graduated from Chestnut Hill College with a bachelor’s degree in Human Services, and since then has earned a master’s degree in Counseling Psychology and a Doctorate in Ministry from Friends International Christian Academy. She is also a Certified Allied Addictions Practitioner and a Certified Domestic Violence Counselor. “The Rev” (as she is called) received a pardon from the Governor in 2017. She has been a member of PLSE’s Pardon Project Steering Committee since 2019, and has served as its Chair since January 2020.

The Honorable Karen Yvette Simmons

Judge Karen Simmons has served on the Philadelphia Municipal Court since January 2006, and was recently retained for her third term, which will end in 2023. In her career as a judge, she has held thousands of hearings in criminal matters and has firmly established her reputation as a “tough but fair” judge. Judge Simmons was recently appointed by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court to the initial Continuing Judicial Education Board of Judges, and she co-chairs the Municipal Court Judicial Education and Conference Planning Committee and serves on its Criminal Rules Committee. Judge Simmons began her legal career as an Assistant Public Defender in the office of the Defenders’ Association of Philadelphia; served as an Assistant City Solicitor for the City of Philadelphia in the areas of labor and employment law; and was Chief Legal Counsel to the Philadelphia Police Department and Police Commissioners before her election to the bench. For her exemplary service to the legal profession and to the public, she has received many recognitions including the Barristers’ Association of Philadelphia’s Honorable A. Leon Higginbotham, Jr. Award and Woman of Distinction Award, the Rutgers Law School Black Law Students Association’s Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Champion of Social Justice and Equality Award, and Enon Tabernacle Baptist Church’s Saints of Valor Judiciary Award. Her long list of service currently includes the Philadelphia Police Athletic League Education Committee, National Bar Association, National Association of Women Judges, Philadelphia Criminal Law Inn of Court, Philadelphia Bar Association, Barristers’ Association of Philadelphia, and the Bright Hope Baptist Church.

Akeem Sims

After personally experiencing the damaging effects of family poverty, drug addiction and incarceration, Akeem actively participates in many programs in impacted communities, including but not limited to: PRO-ACT (Prevention and Recovery Organization Achieving Community Together), a program that supports those struggling with addiction and their journey to sobriety; MENTOR (Mentors Empowering Now To Overcome Recidivism), a program established by the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas to reduce probation violation among black males between the ages of 18 and 30; and he is a core leader of the West Philly Participatory Defense Hub, a community collaborative with the Defender Association of Philadelphia that provides insight, perspective, and support to those being charged and their families as they navigate the justice system, for which he was honored by the Defender Association with a “Community Connector” award on February 27, 2019. The pardon he received from Gov. Wolf opened the door to the career in financial services that was his dream, and Akeem is now with AST Financial, a CPA firm in Plymouth Meeting.

Yvettee Sizer

Yvettee Sizer works in Philadelphia media. Ms. Sizer is also a case manager for The Montgomery County, PA Youth Aid Panel, a juvenile diversionary program that serves as an alternative to Juvenile Court or Magisterial District Court adjudication and provides the juvenile an opportunity to avoid a criminal record. She is an executive of the NAACP in Montgomery County, PA and has also served as Director for the NAACP Youth and College Division. While serving in both NAACP executive roles Yvettee has been a driving force in creating both successful youth diversionary programs and mentoring programs as well as working in areas that address civil engagement, healthcare, criminal justice, economic opportunities, and media diversity. Yvettee holds several board memberships and volunteer positions in Montgomery County, PA that serve/advocate for youth, women and minorities. Yvettee has a degree in Education.

Michael Solomonov

Michael Solomonov is the executive chef and co-owner of Philadelphia’s pioneering Israeli restaurant, Zahav. He is the 2011 James Beard Award winner for “Best Chef, Mid-Atlantic”, a 2016 James Beard Award winner for “Best International Cookbook” and “Book of the Year” for his and business partner/co-author Steven Cook’s first cookbook, Zahav: A World of Israeli Cooking, and the 2017 James Beard Award’s “Outstanding Chef.” In addition to his duties at Zahav, Mike co-owns Philadelphia’s Federal Donuts, Dizengoff, Abe Fisher, Goldie, NYC’s Dizengoff, and the philanthropic Rooster Soup Company, which donates 100% of its profits to Broad Street Ministry Hospitality Collaborative that provides meals and essential services to individuals experiencing homelessness and hunger in Philadelphia. Mike is passionate about Philadelphia, and about giving a second chance to people who have demonstrably turned their lives around and are now giving back to their communities. He sees PLSE’s work as an economic development strategy that attacks root causes of the persistent poverty that afflicts so many inner-city neighborhoods.

Hillary Weinstein, Esq.

Hillary Weinstein found her passion for social justice work while working as a paralegal with the Federal Defenders in the Southern District of New York. While at law school, she spent a semester as an extern with the prosecution team at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in The Hague, Netherlands. After graduation, she began her career with a one-year Philadelphia Bar Association Fellowship at the Capital Habeas Unit of the Federal Community Defender. For six years, she was a litigation associate with Morgan Lewis where she worked pro bono on a number of social justice matters, including volunteering with the Pennsylvania Innocence Project, representing a criminal defendant in federal pre-trial proceedings, and representing an incarcerated client in his (eventually successful) adult adoption proceedings. Hillary also has experience at a small firm specializing in providing advice and representation to clients in the non-profit sector. Recently, Hillary and a colleague started their own law firm, First Law Strategy Group, LLC, specializing in representing plaintiffs in state and federal class actions, insurance bad-faith cases, and in appellate advocacy. Hillary joined PLSE’s Board in 2017.

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