Washington, DC (Oct. 24, 2023)– Two individuals were elected to serve on the Board of Directors of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) at the Association’s Fall Board Meeting in Washington, DC. The Board Members below join those who are currently serving their terms on the NACDL Board of Directors.
Jessica N. Carmichael – Alexandria, VA
Jessica N. Carmichael is a founding partner of Carmichael Ellis & Brock, PLLC in Alexandria, Virginia, a law firm handling criminal defense, military defense, security clearance matters, medical malpractice, and personal injury cases in Virginia and DC. Carmichael's practice focuses on federal criminal defense where she represents clients in a wide range of cases, including those accused of national security offenses, sex offenses, and violent crime. Prior to founding Carmichael Ellis & Brock, she represented clients at the Federal Public Defender's Office in Alexandria, Virginia. Carmichael clerked for two Magistrate Judges in United States District Court in Norfolk, Virginia where her husband, a Naval Officer, was stationed. She earned her Bachelors of Arts in communications from the University of Cincinnati, and her Juris Doctor from Boston College Law School. Carmichael is a member of the Fourth Circuit Judicial Conference, and on the board of the Northern Virginia Chapter of the Federal Bar Association. She is also a member of the Virginia State Bar's MCLE Committee, and is the Eastern District of Virginia's representative to the Fourth Circuit's CJA Appellate Panel Committee. Carmichael is active on the CJA panels for the District of DC and the Eastern District of Virginia. She currently serves on NACDL’s Women in Criminal Defense Committee and is Vice-Chair of the National Security Committee.
Carmen Roe – Houston, TX
Carmen Roe is a criminal defense attorney practicing in State and Federal court in Downtown Houston. Ms. Roe is Board Certified in Criminal Appeals by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization and served as a Board of Director for the State Bar of Texas, Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association (TCDLA) and she is a past president of the Harris County Criminal Defense Lawyers Association (HCCLA). She is a member of the Texas Bar College and was selected as a Texas Bar Fellow. Ms. Roe has previously served on NACDL’s Board of Directors and was named as a 2022 Best of the Best speaker. She is a Texas Super Lawyer, Best Lawyers in America as well as Best Law Firms in America. Ms. Roe is a legal analyst for KHOU in Houston (the first female analyst in the market) and a frequent guest legal analyst for CourtTV.
Jessie Diamond, Public Affairs and Communications Associate, (202) 465-7647 or jdiamond@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.
