Civil Society - Content

    Linda Miller - Executive Director of Civil Society, is an attorney with 30 years’ experience in St. Paul dealing with underserved and frequently victimized populations. In her private practice, she specialized in civil rights and discrimination law. From 1994-1995, she served as President of the National Employment Lawyers Association – Minnesota Chapter. She also served as an adjunct facility member of the William Mitchell College of Law. She has also served in the United States Peace Corps in Kenya.
    In 2001, Ms. Miller was appointed by the Commissioner of Public Safety to the Minnesota Victim and Witness Advisory Council, and is a member of the Immigrant Community Roundtable.
    She received a Certificate of Appreciation from the United States Department of Justice in 2002 after developing best practice method of reaching out to immigrant crime victims including trafficking victims.
    She is the author of a journal article entitled Victimization of the Acculturating Immigrant, which was published in the “International Journal of Victimology” in 2007.
    Ms. Miller founded Civil Society in 1996.  Civil Society's mission is to provide victims of human trafficking and exploitation with comprehensive services. She speaks internationally on the topic of international human trafficking victim service provision.

Karen Cooper - Program Manager/Attorney with Civil Society. Karen assists victims of crime obtain legal assistance and other services. She is a former OtterTail Assistant County Attorney and worked as a prosecutor for 13 years. She graduated from Hamline University School of Law.

Jane Rydholm - Program Manager/Attorney with Civil Society.
She helps victims of human trafficking obtain immigration relief and other services.
She is a former Assistant Attorney General for the State of Minnesota and graduated magna cum laude from William Mitchell College of Law.

Debra Moore Thomas - Training Coordinator
She have worked in the field of Social/Human Services for nearly 20 years and for 3 years at Civil Society as a Crime Victim Advocate, and more recently as a Case Manager for Human Trafficked Victims.
She wrote: "As a Case Manager, I have had the opportunity to meet people from all walks of life. It has been a pleasure to assist them in regaining control of there life and recapturing the dreams of becoming a United States Citizen and a productive member of Society. I look forward to providing our clients with confidential and high quality services to met their basic needs."

Gloria Quiroga - Outreach Specialist with Civil Society from December 1996. She builds bridges of trust between clients and the legal system; interprets for clients when meeting with attorneys; advises on cultural appropriateness of program materials; presents at conferences on cultural differences and the legal system. She provides guidance throughout pregnancy and birth of children as a Doula (St. Paul Family Centers from March 2003). Her Honors: Bilingual Education Paraprofessional of the Year -Certificate of Nomination 2003; Black, Indian, Hispanic & Asian Women in Action-Award of Honor 2002.

Sachiko Kudoh is working on variety of project to provide technical assistance for executive Director, mangers and Attorneys; creating, updating and translating program materials.

OUR CONTRACT ATTORNEYS:

Phyllis Kirwin

Janice Burr has worked as a contract attorney with Civil Society since March 2002. At Civil Society she has helped clients at various legal clinics with immigration and general legal problems. She graduated from William Mitchell College of Law, has a Master’s degree in Counseling Psychology, and a degree from the University of Minnesota summa cum laude. She has worked at a self-help immigrant group as a supervisor. At Civil Society she has focused on helping crime victims, domestic abuse victims, and eligibility screening for government relief programs, while helping clients from the community with their overall problems.

Martha (Ziebell) Sullivan is a licensed attorney in both Minnesota and Florida, with several years of experience in family law and estate planning. She has represented numerous immigrant victims of domestic violence that may not otherwise have a strong voice in the court. Ms. Sullivan is a graduate of Smith College and Hamline University School of Law, and currently resides in Hastings, Minnesota with her family.

Salima Khakoo

Siv Dobrovolny is an attorney who staffs two free legal clinics for Civil Society to help the immigrant community as a whole as well as identify potential domestic abuse and human trafficking victims.
She is also the Student Projects Coordinator.
In this role, she works with students at local universities and law schools to develop projects that both advance students' knowledge of immigrant issues and provide needed research for Civil Society staff.
Ms. Dobrovolny graduated from Hamline Law School magna cum laude in 2005.

Steve Jahn is an immigration attorney who works at three legal clinics for Civil Society and represents crime victims on immigration matters. A graduate with distinction of the University of Iowa Law School, he has worked as a staff attorney at Proyecto Libertad in Harlingen, Texas and at the Legal Assistance Foundation of Chicago. He has also worked as an organizer in labor union and non-profit legislative campaigns in both Illinois and Minnesota. Steve is fluent in Spanish.