Vanessa Antoun is NACDL’s Senior Resource Counsel. She provides resource materials, support and training for criminal defense lawyers across the country, with a particular focus on small and solo practices, indigent defense counsel, and post-conviction lawyers. Ms. Antoun coordinates NACDL’s efforts on the Microscopic Hair Comparison Analysis Review, a collaboration with the FBI, Department of Justice, and Innocence Project to identify and review cases where scientifically invalid microscopic hair comparison evidence may have been presented. She organizes nationwide trainings for defense lawyers on the latest techniques for investigating and litigating cases involving forensic evidence, post-conviction innocence claims, immigration issues, representing juveniles in adult court, and a variety of other topics. She developed and maintains an online resource center for defense counsel, including developing research and training materials. She has represented NACDL on several advisory boards, working with other organizations to implement national criminal justice projects and trainings.
Prior to joining NACDL, Ms. Antoun was a criminal defense lawyer for over ten years, representing clients charged with offenses ranging from reckless driving to capital murder. Following an internship with the City of Alexandria Public Defender, she joined the Fairfax County Office of the Public Defender in northern Virginia. She served as an Assistant Public Defender, Senior Assistant, Deputy Public Defender and finally as the chief Public Defender for the City and County of Fairfax. She then went into private practice with Devine & Connell, P.L.C., and most recently had been a solo practitioner. Ms. Antoun is a graduate of the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, and George Mason University School of Law
