Reality DV: Domestic Violence in Appalachian Culture

Cassie Chambers Armstrong – KEYNOTE

Cassie Chambers Armstrong is a 2015 graduate of Harvard Law School, where she was President of the Legal Aid Bureau. She subsequently was selected to be a Skadden Fellow and with that award worked for two years as an attorney at Louisville Legal Aid Society and the Kentucky Equal Justice Center, where she represented victims of domestic violence in family law matters, designed and implemented a comprehensive program to provide legal services to rural victims of domestic violence and litigated appeals on poverty law issues. Before beginning her practice, she clerked for Judge Amul Thapar, now at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit and then a Judge at the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky.
Professor Armstrong received a B.A. from Yale College, summa cum laude, in 2010, an M.P.H. from Yale in 2011 and an M.Sc. in Public Management and Governance from the London School of Economics in 2012.
She is a native Kentuckian, having grown up in eastern Kentucky. Her book, Hill Women: Finding Family and a Way Forward in the Appalachian Mountains was published by Random House in 2020. She was elected to Louisville Metro Council’s District 8 seat in June 2020.

Miranda Hucks

Miranda Hucks is a family nurse practitioner, a mom to seven girls and stepmom to three boys. She is also a domestic violence survivor. She has a Bachelor of Science in Nursing and a Master of Science in nursing as a Family Nurse Practitioner.

Mark Wilson Edwards

Mark Edwards was born on November 13, 1978, in Richlands Virginia. He graduated from Lebanon High School in May 1997, which by that time, he had decided to become a police officer. Mark attended Southwest Virginia Community College for 2 years, earned an Associate degree in police science, and finished his tenure on the dean’s list. He attended the Southwest VA Criminal Justice Training Academy in 2000, which lasted 16 weeks at that time. He started work at the Bristol VA Police Department on March 12, 2001. He received officer of the year in 2011 and received the MADD award 3 years in a row (2011-2013), which is an award for the most DUI arrests in the department. He made Detective in 2015, this is specialized in the area of Domestic Violence, which has been a humbling and gratifying experience. On August 03, 2013, he truly had a born-again experience. The Lord called me to open a church, to be the Pastor, and to name it The Cross of Christ Worship Center. The first church service was held on February 08, 2015 and is still going strong to date. The Church is located at 670 Norfolk Ave. Bristol, VA and is truly a house of prayer. God is so good!!!!!

Anita Earp Robinson

Anita Earp Robinson is the Senior Managing Attorney of Southwest Virginia Legal Aid. Anita oversees the Centralized Intake Unit and Private Attorney Involvement programs. Anita has over 35 years’ experience as an attorney committed to the representation of low-income clients. Anita is also responsible for the development of protocol to insure SVLAS’s compliance with grant requirements and the Virginia State Bar Rules of Professional Conduct.

Deborah Marshall

Deborah Marshall, has an associate degree in Paralegal Studies, a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice from Bluefield College and has worked with SVLAS as an intake paralegal for 16 years. She resides in Castlewood, VA and has two children. Ms. Marshall has been the point person for the domestic violence referrals for the past 4 years and is also a survivor of domestic violence.

Angel Mefford

Angel Mefford, the Community Education and Advocacy Coordinator for Family Crisis Support Services is no stranger to the culture of rural Appalachian living. A native of Wise, VA. Ms. Mefford received her master’s degree in Human Services Counseling from Liberty University and her Bachelor degree from UVA-Wise. She continuously rotates working as an advocate to victims of violent crimes, providing education and support to the students of Wise County, and working in conjunction with the Sheriff’s Office to utilize the LAP program for domestic violence. Ms. Mefford has worked in the field of human services and advocacy for 18 years. In addition to a lifelong passion for helping, Angel also sings songs for the cause of empowerment, justice, and freedom at different events.

Natasha Chandler

Investigator Natasha Chandler with Wise County Sheriff’s Office. Natasha has been employed with Wise County for about 5 years. She has been the Domestic Violence Investigator for half a year and loves every second of it. Her favorite part of her job and what she excels greatly in, is charging defendants with violating protective orders.

Susheela Varky

Susheela Varky has been involved in the public interest arena for more than 30 years. In DC, she gained national and local experience in housing and women’s issues at organizations such as McAuley Institute, The National Housing Trust, and Women Empowered Against Violence. In 1998, she joined the national drafting committee of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) and helped write VAWA’s original housing provisions. Since moving to Richmond in 2003, Ms. Varky has worked for Legal Information Network for Cancer (LINC), the Office of the Executive Secretary of the Supreme Court of Virginia (OES) and is currently the Director of the Center for Family Advocacy and the Attorney for Domestic and Sexual Violence at Virginia Poverty Law Center (VPLC).
At VPLC, Ms. Varky collaborates with state and local stakeholders, conducts trainings, engages in advocacy, provides legal consultations, and takes compelling domestic and/or sexual violence, immigration-related cases through a pro bono legal program she started in 2009 called Legal Assistance to Victim-Immigrants of Domestic Abuse (LA VIDA). In addition to these responsibilities, Ms. Varky leads VPLC’s Center for Family Advocacy, where she oversees team members’ work on family law, domestic and sexual violence, immigration, and child welfare.

Dlana Hall Bodmer

Dlana Hall Bodmer is a successful 30-year local businesswoman. She is a life member of the MDRT, a highly recognized mark of excellence and limited to only the most successful in the financial services profession with exceptional professional knowledge, strict ethical conduct and outstanding client services. Dlana is the sister of Gina Renee Hall, the victim in Virginia’s First successful “No Body” Murder Conviction. Her many Life Experiences have led to advocacy for victims of heinous crimes–A Voice for Victims. Dlana has authored two non-fiction books — two very different books. The Miraculous Journey—A Day Made in Heaven, her memoir of an extraordinary experience & Web of Lies—A Day Made in Hell, the factual resource for The True Story of Gina Hall–Dlana is Gina’s Voice.

Dana Fleitman

Dana Fleitman (M.A. Ed. H.D.) has been with the Stalking Prevention, Awareness, and Resource Center (SPARC) since 2018. In her role as Training and Awareness Specialist, she provides training and technical assistance to multidisciplinary professionals across the country on recognizing and responding to stalking. Dana is a skilled trainer who leads in-person and online workshops on topics including stalking behaviors and dynamics, stalking on campuses, the use of technology to stalk, risk assessment, and safety planning. With a focus on public awareness, Dana also authors original resources – including ready-to-use curricula, discussion guides, and publications on stalking – and leads SPARC’s National Stalking Awareness Month efforts each January, designing and creating SPARC’s social media campaigns as well as infographics and videos year-round.

Ashley Manuel

Ashley Manuel is a Certified Trauma Services Specialist through the Association of Traumatic Stress Specialist and currently serves as the Lethality Assessment Program Coordinator for the Family Resource Center. Ashley has worked in the Human Services field for almost twenty-years and has worn many hats: Adult Probation Officer, Child Forensic Interviewer, Juvenile Residential Service provider, In-Home service provider to those with Intellectual Disabilities and Drug and Alcohol Rehab Technician just to name a few. She loves to travel and cook with her husband and laugh as much as possible!

Sandi Stapleton

Wise County & Norton City Victim/Witness Program Director