Our Washington, DC Team

Crystal Fleming is the Managing Attorney at KIND’s Washington D.C. office. Prior to joining KIND in April 2022, Ms. Fleming served as a Supervising Attorney in the Immigrant Protection Unit at the New York Legal Assistance Group (NYLAG), where she oversaw a team representing unaccompanied children before New York Immigration Court, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), and the New York State Family Courts. She has also represented clients of all ages in a variety of immigration matters, including removal defense litigation, VAWA, U-Visa, Cancelation of Removal, asylum applications, and Special Immigrant Juvenile Status applications. At NYLAG, Crystal was a member of the People of Color in Leadership Affinity Group where she worked to create a sense of community for NYLAG staff who identify as people of color, multi-racial, and ethnic minorities, and to advocate on issues of racial justice and equity. Ms. Fleming has been interviewed by the New York Times and Aljazeera on unaccompanied children and the current state of asylum laws. Ms. Fleming received her JD from Capital University Law School and her BS from George Mason University. She is admitted to practice law in the District of Columbia, Virginia, New York, and New Jersey. Ms. Fleming is Salvadorian American and is fluent in Spanish.

Lauren Graham Sullivan is a Managing Attorney, Washington DC - Released serving the District of Columbia’s immigrant community. Prior to joining KIND, Lauren dedicated her legal career to representing immigrants in a variety of contexts including legal matters before U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), Immigration Courts, the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), Consulates/Embassies, and Customs and Border Patrol (CBP). Her practice includes advocacy before the Boston and Miami Immigration Courts as well as complicated affirmative family reunification and naturalization cases before USCIS. In addition to her direct-representation experience with South Coastal Counties Legal Services, Inc., Catholic Charities, South Florida Justice for our Neighbors, and the Fonte Immigration Firm, Lauren was a Project Attorney for the Catholic Legal Immigration Network’s BIA Pro Bono project and National Children’s Project, giving her a unique understanding of the training, resources, and mentorship challenges facing pro bono attorneys representing vulnerable populations. Lauren grew up in Falls Church, Virginia and earned her Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy/World Religions from James Madison University. She completed her Juris Doctorate at Roger Williams University School of Law as a Public Interest Fellow and is licensed to practice law in Massachusetts. She is a proud resident of the District of Columbia with her Coast Guard JAG spouse and her three lovely little ladies.

Prior to joining KIND, Jessalyn worked in Boston as a court-appointed attorney for children and parents involved in child protection proceedings, students facing school offender and truancy petitions, and adults in mental health guardianship and commitment cases. Through her casework, Jessalyn was able to familiarize herself with reporting procedures for allegations of child abuse and neglect, services focused on reunification and permanency, and the difficulties faced by families and children in obtaining supports. Jessalyn was selected as a Super Lawyers Rising Star for the Boston area in 2018. Jessalyn is active in other professional organizations, participating in various capacities with the Washington Council of Lawyers and in advocacy roles pertaining to the welfare of undocumented residents in Washington D.C. She has previously written Practice Point pieces for the American Bar Association’s Children’s Rights Litigation Committee. Jessalyn is a DC-area native and earned her JD from Northeastern University School of Law in Boston and her BA from Pennsylvania State University.

Kelly Hii (she/her) is a Senior Attorney for Legal Programs in the Washington DC office, where she provides client-centered, trauma-informed representation to Unaccompanied Minors in their immigration cases. Prior to joining KIND in November 2023, she worked for five years as an immigration attorney with Ayuda in both the DC and Maryland field offices, beginning as an Equal Justice America Fellow. She provided representation to adults and children in a variety of immigration matters from asylum, special immigrant juvenile status, cancellation of removal, U visas, T visas, and VAWA petitions. She graduated from Georgetown University Law Center in 2018 with a certificate in Refugees and Humanitarian Emergencies and was a Hispanic Bar Association Fellow and a Ryan Child Advocacy Fellow. Prior to law school, Kelly was a Peace Corps volunteer in the Kyrgyz Republic, where her passion for human rights, justice, and equality were solidified.

Eli MacDonald joined KIND in October 2023 as Staff Attorney in the Washington DC office. Eli grew up in North Carolina and lived in Central and South America before attending the University of San Francisco (B.A.) and Quinnipiac School of Law (J.D.) in Connecticut. He graduated magna cum laude with a focus on immigration law. Prior to attending law school, Eli worked with individuals in detention and with various immigration law firms where he gained experience in detention and removal defense, humanitarian immigration petitions, family, and other issues before US Citizenship and Immigration Services. Eli possesses a deep interest and passion for immigration law and looks forward to a long career advocating for those who willingly or unwillingly come into contact with the US immigration system. He is committed to providing excellent and compassionate legal representation and humanizing the US immigration system through his work. In his free time Eli loves to spend time in the ocean, hiking, listening to live music, playing pick-up basketball, or checking out new restaurants!

Bio coming soon!

Bio coming soon!

Bio coming soon!

Ambar Martin (she/her) is a Senior Paralegal at KIND's Washington, D.C. office. Ambar holds a bachelor's degree in International Affairs from Florida State University (FSU). During her time at FSU, Ambar was an active student organizer working closely with organizations such as Amnesty International USA. Prior to joining KIND, Ambar was the Project END and Immigration Paralegal at Ayuda where she focused on humanitarian immigration cases and immigration legal services fraud.

Bio coming soon!

Bio coming soon!

Bio coming soon.

Andy Morales supports the Legal Services team at KIND. She graduated summa cum laude from California State University, Fresno with degrees in Political Science and Latin American Studies. Prior to joining KIND, Andy had many experiences working with children including volunteering for Camp Kesem, a nonprofit organization that supports kids through and beyond their parent’s cancer, as well as assistant teaching in Verona, Italy. Andy also held multiple legislative internships in the federal government as well as the local government of Fresno. These opportunities exposed Andy to the work of KIND and led her to pursue a career with this organization. As an immigrant from Juarez, Mexico, she has always shown a passion for immigration reform and advancing the rights of those seeking refuge. Andy held an internship and part-time position in KIND prior to joining full-time as a paralegal for the ORR Emergency Intake Shelter in El Paso in May of 2021. She hopes to pursue both a Law and Masters of Public Policy degree to continue her advocacy.

Kelsey Komich Garcia joins KIND in August 2023 as the Social Services Supervisor in the Washington DC office. Kelsey is a licensed clinical social worker from Maine. She received her Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Fordham University in 2011. Kelsey began her post-graduate career in Guatemala as an English teacher for Safe Passage, an NGO in Guatemala City. In 2015, Kelsey returned to the United States to receive her Master’s in Social Work from Boston College with a concentration in Clinical and Global Social Work, finishing her final field placement in Guatemala. Upon graduation from her MSW program, she returned to the US to work in a community health center in Lynn, Massachusetts. In this role, she facilitated outpatient group and individual therapy in the clinic and local public schools, mostly with unaccompanied minors and their families. During this time, Kelsey also facilitated two different parenting courses for parents who have recently arrived in the US and participated in a research program through Boston College focusing on older Latinx populations living in Massachusetts. In her most recent professional experience, Kelsey has been coordinating the Emotional Support Program at an NGO in Guatemala City.

Bio coming soon!

Marissa Ornelas is a Social Service Coordinator for the Washington DC office starting in September 2022. Marissa graduated from Saint Louis University where she majored in Sociology with a concentration in Urbanization, Immigration, and Demography. She has been working with the immigrant community for four years. Before joining KIND, Marissa was a Home Study and Post Release Services caseworker with Church World Service, where she coordinated referrals for unaccompanied children in the DMV area. Marissa was also a legal assistant at Capital Area Immigrants’ Rights Coalition, where she provided legal services to detained children in the DMV area. In addition, she has worked with the Dilley Pro Bono Project where she assisted detained immigrant mothers and their children with credible fear interviews. She holds a graduate certificate from Oxford University in Forced Migration.