Warm welcome to CRDA's new Board members (elected by the Board on May 21, 2025)

Tovah R. Calderon (CRT service 2001-2025), 

https://www.linkedin.com/in/tovahcalderon/ 

Tovah served for more than two decades in the Department of Justice Civil Rights Division.  She was hired in 2001 through the Attorney General’s Honors Program and spent most of her career in the Division’s Appellate Section, where she worked closely with the Division’s trial sections and the Office of the Solicitor General to enforce federal civil rights laws in the U.S. Courts of Appeals and the Supreme Court.  She was promoted several times, eventually serving as the Section’s Principal Deputy Chief until earlier this year.

In addition to her time in the Appellate Section, Tovah served as an Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General in 2021, reviewing the work of the Division’s Employment Litigation and Immigrant and Employee Rights Sections, and was a founding member of the Division’s Policy and Strategy Section from 2010 to 2012.  Tovah also served on detail to The White House Domestic Policy Council in 2013 and to the Senate Judiciary Committee from 2005 to 2006, where she worked to expand civil rights protections through legislation and other policy initiatives.

Tovah received her J.D. from Howard University School of Law and a B.A. from the University of Michigan.  After law school, she clerked on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit.

Deena Fox (2010-2025)

https://www.linkedin.com/in/deena-fox-8b2694/ 

Deena is a civil rights attorney who served for fifteen years in the Civil Rights Division's Special Litigation Section.  First as a trial attorney and then as a Deputy Chief, Deena focused her work on systemic violations of the rights of children in the juvenile justice system, religious rights of prisoners, and the right of people with disabilities to live in the most integrated setting appropriate under the ADA.  While at the Division, Deena also served as a Professional Responsibility Officer and mediated employment disputes throughout the federal government through the Shared Neutrals program.  Deena also volunteers in the community.  She served on the Sepla Public Charter School board, including serving as Board Chair for five years.  She also served on the board of DC Minyan, a lay-led synagogue in Washington DC.  In her spare time, Deena enjoys playing board games, puzzling, and hiking with her family, running in Rock Creek Park, and hosting friends and family at her home.

Oneshia Herring (2014-2021)

https://www.linkedin.com/in/oneshiaherring/ 

Oneshia spent nearly a decade at the U.S. Department of Justice. She began her tenure as a Senior Trial Attorney in the Housing and Civil Enforcement Section, where she led the Fair Lending Testing Initiative, the Race and National Origin Working Group, and multiple section-wide efforts. During her time in the Housing Section, she received the Section and Division’s Leadership Award and several other honors.

She later served as Senior Counsel in the Office of the Assistant Attorney General under Kristen Clarke, and subsequently as Deputy Director of the Office for Civil Rights in the Office of Justice Programs. Oneshia was Chair of the Department of Justice Association of Black Attorneys while at the Department, and currently serves on the Advisory Committee for the Justice Connection.

Currently, Oneshia is the Senior Vice President and Counsel for Consulting and Compliance at the National Fair Housing Alliance. In this role, she leads a portfolio of high-impact, equity-centered initiatives and manages large-scale consulting and compliance projects.  Oneshia has also taught at the University of Baltimore Law School. 

Amanda Maisels (2001-2025)

https://www.linkedin.com/in/amanda-maisels-185613/ 

I first came to CRT during law school as a summer intern in the Voting Section.  I went to law school to be a civil rights lawyer and I picked the Voting Section after being inspired by a law school class on the Warren Court.  Then, after clerking, a Skadden fellowship doing disability employment at Whitman Walker Clinic, and a short stint at a plaintiff-side civil rights firm, I joined the Disability Rights Section in 2001 as a trial attorney.  I was thrilled to be getting my dream job.  I had become drawn to disability rights through family and personal experiences, and there was nowhere better to be a disability rights lawyer.  I stayed in DRS for 24 years, serving as a deputy chief for the last 12.  I filed the complaint in the Division's first Olmstead case in 2009 and supervised the Division's first gender dysphoria ADA lawsuit in 2024, and loved all of my work at DRS. 

I always enjoyed opportunities to work with other sections, including utilizing the testing program in HCE, consulting with APP on ADA cases, and co-counseling with FCS on a recent investigation.  I worked with ELS on EEOC coordination since I managed DRS' charge referrals and the pre-referral program with the EEOC.  And I became friends with ELS folks since we shared the same floor at 4CON.  I also co-chaired the Honors Hiring committee for two years, and enjoyed working with folks from across the Division.  My last day with CRT is May 16.  I am very grateful to have a Civil Rights Division Association, which I just learned about. and would love to be of help and to stay connected with my CRT family by serving on its Board.

Joseph Rich (1968-2005) (Retired)

2005-2018: Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, Project Co-Director, Fair Housing and Community Development Project

1968-2005: Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division

• 1999-2005: Chief, Voting Section
• 1987-1999: Deputy Chief, Fair Housing and Civil Enforcement Section
• 1973-1987: Deputy Chief, Education Section
• 1969-1973: Trial Attorney, Education Section
• 1968-1969: Trial Attorney, Southern Section

Education: 1968: J.D. University of Michigan Law School, cum laude (1967-68: Assistant Editor, Michigan Law Review); 1964: B.A. Yale University

Jennifer Robins (2017-2025)

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifer-robins-44b47053/ 

Jennifer spent a little over 8 years as a trial attorney in the Disability Rights Section, where she was part of the Olmstead team, enforcing the ADA's integration mandate. She joined the Division in January 2017, and is, with sadness, leaving the Division as part of the resignation program. During her time at the Division, she was selected in 2021 for a nine-month detail as a senior counsel in the Front Office (Office of the Assistant Attorney General). She also joined litigation teams in the Special Litigation Section and Housing and Civil Enforcement Section Outside of DOJ, she is an adjunct professor at George Mason Antonin Scalia Law School where she teaches a disability law seminar.

Prior to joining the DOJ, Jennifer clerked for Judge Christopher F. Droney of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and Judge John D. Bates of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. She received her J.D. from the University of Michigan Law School and her B.S.J. from Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism.  She lives in Washington, D.C. with her husband and two 5-year-old boys.

Steve Rosenbaum (1978-2024)

Steve served in the Civil Rights Division for 46 years, from 1978 to 2024. He was the chief of three sections: the Housing and Civil Enforcement Section (2003 to 2015), the Special Litigation Section (1996 to 2003, and 2016 to 2024) and the Voting Section (1992 to 1994). He also worked in the Office of the Assistant Attorney General, the Appellate Section and the Employment Litigation Section.

In 2013, President Obama recognized Steve with a Distinguished Rank Award for exceptional achievement in the Senior Executive Service. In 2023, Steve received both the Department’s Mary C. Lawton Lifetime Service Award and the Division’s John Doar Award.

Alberto Ruisanchez (1996-2025)

https://www.linkedin.com/in/alberto-ruisanchez-1b7b84140/ 

My Civil Rights Division career began as a paralegal in the Housing & Civil Enforcement Section, from 1996 to 1998.  Because of that wonderful experience working alongside so many talented people who were advocating for such a noble cause, I knew what I wanted to do with my life: be an attorney in the Civil Rights Division.  I left the Division in 1998 to attend Harvard Law School.  After graduating in 2001 and completing a clerkship on the First Circuit Court of Appeals, I returned to the Civil Rights Division in 2002 through the Attorney General’s Honors Program.  From 2002 to February 2025, I served in the following roles in the Division:

• Trial attorney in the Housing & Civil Enforcement Section (2002-2004);
• Trial attorney in the Voting Section (2004-2008);
• Trial attorney in the Disability Rights Section (2009-2011);
• Deputy Chief in the Disability Rights Section (2011-2013);
• Chief of the Immigrant and Employee Rights Section (2013-2017, 2019-February 2025); and
• Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the AAG’s Office (2017-2019).

In February 2025, I was involuntarily reassigned from the Civil Rights Division to the Office of the Associate Attorney General.  I will be leaving the Justice Department soon but hope to return to the Division one day and continue fighting for civil rights.

Corey Sanders (2007-present)

Corey M. Sanders is a Senior Trial Attorney in the Special Litigation Section and has served over 18 years in the Civil Rights Division.  He has worked on numerous police and jail investigations and litigation, including:   

• The 2021 investigation of the Minneapolis Police Department after a jury convicted police officer Derek Chauvin in the murder of George Floyd.
• The 2021 investigation of the Town of Colorado City, Arizona and the City of Hildale, Utah after a jury found the defendants committed various civil rights violations that led to a court-imposed Injunction.
• The 2016 investigation of the City of Newark and Newark Police Division alleging a pattern or practice of discriminatory conduct and violations of the Fourth Amendment that led to a Consent Decree.
• The 2013 investigation of the Miami, Florida Police Department alleging a pattern or practice of police misconduct against black and brown citizens that led to a Memorandum of Agreement.
• The 2008 investigation of Cook County, Illinois and Cook County Sheriff’s Department on unconstitutional conditions at the Cook County Jail that resulted in a Cooperative Settlement Agreement.

During his tenure in the Special Litigation Section, Corey was able to close four pattern or practice investigations (e.g., Evangeline Parish (LA) Sheriff's Office, Miami (FL) Police Department, Warren (OH) Police Department, and St Tammany (LA) Sheriff's Office).

In addition to his official duties, Corey is a former Officer and longstanding and active member of the Department of Justice Association of Black Attorneys.  Corey is also a current member of the United States Army Reserve, serving as a Regional Defense Counsel for a Trial Defense Unit in San Antonio, Texas.

Samantha (Sam) Trepel (2009-2025)

https://www.linkedin.com/in/samantha-trepel-b950b1339/  

I am honored to have served in the Civil Rights Division for a total of 18 years. After graduating from college, I worked as a paralegal in the Criminal Section from 2002 to 2004. Watching Division attorneys vindicate the constitutional rights of people in custody who had been abused by the officers responsible for protecting them confirmed for me that I wanted to become a civil rights lawyer. I went to law school, clerked for two years, and then joined the Division as an Honors Attorney in 2009.  There, I spent four years in the Special Litigation Section, where my colleagues and I worked to remedy systemic constitutional violations by law enforcement agencies, prisons, and jails, and brought litigation to enforce the rights of individuals with disabilities to live in the community. For the next decade, I served in the Criminal Section, first as a Trial Attorney and then as a Special Litigation Counsel, prosecuting hate crimes and criminal civil rights abuses by public officials, such as the sexual abuse of military veterans by a Veteran's Affairs doctor, the murder of George Floyd by former Minneapolis Police Department officer Derek Chauvin, and the failure of Chauvin's colleages to intervene against his excessive force.

In January 2025, I completed a year and a half detail to the Associate Attorney General's Office, where I served as a Deputy Associate Attorney General reviewing the work of the Civil Rights Division and Office on Violence Against Women. This role provided me with a window into the incredible work CRT professionals were doing across the Division in the enforcement, policy, and regulatory spaces, and allowed me to observe how the relationship between the Department's senior political leadership and career public servants is intended to function. I also expanded my CRT network considerably, as I worked with managers and attorneys from all CRT sections to uplift and facilitate their work. Since leaving the Department in early April, I have been leveraging the relationships I've built across the Division and the decades to connect people leaving CRT with people and opportunities and to support those who remain. I would love to serve on the CRDA Board to continue and expand upon this work supporting CRT's people (past and present) and mission.

I am also excited to share that this week I will be starting a new role as a Senior Counsel at States United Democracy Center, where I will focus on rule of law issues.

Katie Wolfe (2003-2025)

https://www.linkedin.com/in/kathleen-wolfe-a7b454359/ 

Katie joined the Civil Rights Division in 2003 through the Attorney General’s Honors Program, following three years clerking for the Honorable Michael Melloy, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit. Katie served in the Disability Rights Section as a trial attorney from 2003 to 2011 and then as a Special Litigation Counsel and part of the Section’s senior management team from 2011 to 2022. A frequent instructor at the Department’s National Advocacy Center, Katie also regularly provided legal writing training to new Division attorneys. She further honed her instructional skills through adjunct teaching at Georgetown University Law Center. In 2018, she received the Division’s John Doar Award, which recognizes exceptional leadership, integrity, and commitment to civil rights enforcement.

In May 2022, Katie joined the Division’s Office of the Assistant Attorney General as a career Deputy Assistant Attorney General (following Greg Friel’s retirement). In this capacity, she oversaw much of the Division’s civil docket, serving as the primary reviewer for the Appellate Section throughout her tenure, with significant stints also reviewing the Employment Litigation, Immigrant and Employee Rights, Housing and Civil Enforcement, Educational Opportunities, Voting, and Policy and Strategy Sections. Katie also served as the OAAG reviewer for the Division’s LGBTQI+ Working Group and chaired the Division’s Diversity Council. From January 20 to February 20, 2025, she served as the Supervisory Official exercising the duties of the Assistant Attorney General. In late January 2025, the then-Acting Attorney General involuntarily reassigned Katie (effective February 21) to a newly created Sanctuary Cities Enforcement Working Group, composed of senior career executives from across the Department. In early May, Katie (along with nearly the entire working group) took administrative leave.  

Throughout her career in the Division, Katie has taken every opportunity to hone her leadership approach, which is grounded on a fundamental belief that the Division’s mission is truly dependent on career staff who are engaged, appreciated, and provided not only the professional resources necessary to do the job but also the trust and support of Division leadership. She is eager to contribute her deep knowledge and leadership skills to the Board of the Civil Rights Division Association.