Attorney Priscilla Hammond
Attorney Michael Miller
Attorney Tammie L. Gildea
Lynn Fairfield-Sonn, Office Manager
Kristine Johnson, Child Welfare Advocate
Sheila Perry, Child Welfare Advocate
Attorney Priscilla Hammond
Attorney Priscilla Hammond is managing attorney and one of the founding partners of the Southeastern Connecticut Center for Juvenile Justice, Inc.
Before developing a child welfare law practice Attorney Hammond was a senior executive in the insurance industry in Hartford, CT. She began her career practicing law in a civil defense firm in New Jersey.
Since 2001 Ms. Hammond has specialized her law practice in the areas of Child Protection, Probate and Delinquency. She also served as Guardian ad Litem for victims in criminal matters. Her practice included representing indigent parents and neglected and abused children in the Superior Court for Juvenile Matters in Waterford, CT. Appearances were also required in the Criminal Courts in New London, CT.
Attorney Hammond was a member of the Lyme-Old Lyme Board of Education from 2000-2006 where she served as treasurer, chair of the Human Resources Committee and a two time member of the Negotiations Committee. She is a member of the Connecticut Bar as well as the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Bar.
A Dean’s list graduate of Barnard College, Attorney Hammond received her law degree from Vermont Law School where she served on the Vermont Law Review.
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Attorney Michael Miller
Attorney Michael Miller is the senior trial attorney and one of the founding partners of the Southeastern Connecticut Center for Juvenile Justice, Inc. , a nonprofit legal service firm.
Since 2003, Attorney Miller has focused his practice in Child Protection law representing children, parents, legal guardians and other intervening parties in the state superior court, probate courts and tribal courts. He has litigated many complex cases including: serious medical neglect matters, cases involving parental and First Amendment rights, and termination of parental rights (“TPR”) cases. He was involved in one of the longest TPR cases in the state lasting 62 days. In addition to his child protection cases, he also managed his own general practice firm in New London.
Attorney Miller also practiced law in New Jersey from 1991 until 2000 where he was an associate and partner in a general practice law firm in Jersey City. In 2000, he relocated with his family to Tennessee where he practiced law in Memphis. Upon relocating to Connecticut, he worked as a manager and assistant legal counsel for a municipal agency in Bayonne, New Jersey while he undertook to take the bar examination and open his own law practice.
Recently, Attorney Miller had the opportunity to be a presenter for the Connecticut Bar Association Continuing Legal Education program and at the National Legal Aid and Defenders Association on the subjects of evidence and the multidisciplinary representation of children.
Prior to entering Campbell University Law School, he served with the United States Army.
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Attorney Tammie L. Gildea
Attorney Tammie L. Gildea is trial attorney and one of the founding partners of the Southeastern Connecticut Center for Juvenile Justice, Inc.
Attorney Gildea has over 15 years experience representing children in various aspects of family and juvenile law, opening her own law practice in December 1992 in New London Connecticut.
Initially, Attorney Gildea practiced in various areas of law including personal injury, bankruptcy, divorce, criminal, juvenile and probate. For the last few years, however, she had begun to focus her practice on Family and Juvenile Law. She has also served as Guardian ad litem for victims in criminal matters and as Attorney or Guardian ad litem for children in contested custody cases. Her practice required her to appear regularly in Family Court, Juvenile Court, Criminal Court and less frequently, Probate Court.
Attorney Gildea is also a trained mediator, having received certificates in Mediation from both the Quinnipiac & UCONN Schools of Law and Divorce Training Associates. She has also received Multi-Disciplinary Training- in Collaborative Divorce Law. She worked as a mediator for several years prior to becoming a partner with SECCJJ.
A magna cum laude graduate of the University of Connecticut, Ms. Gildea received her law degree from the University of Connecticut Law School.
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Lynn Fairfield-Sonn, Office Manager
Office Manager Lynn Fairfield-Sonn joined the Southeastern Connecticut Center for Juvenile Justice, Inc. with over thirty years of experience in management and nonprofit services.
Lynn began her career at Southern New England Telephone Company where her work encompassed economic and financial analysis, strategic planning, contract administration and field supervision. She then joined a law firm where she served as legal administrator with a staff of 35. After four years, Lynn joined Fairfield-Sonn Associates to provide organizational consulting in the areas of strategic planning, board development, survey research, financial policy, training and development, and operational procedures, primarily for nonprofit organizations.
In the non-profit arena, Ms. Fairfield-Sonn has been president of the Junior League of Greater New Haven, president of the board of directors for Old Lyme Day Care and served as chair of the Board of Education of the Regional School District #18 for over seven years. She has served on the boards of the Chamber of Commerce of Southeastern Connecticut, the Coordinating Council for Children in Crisis, Janus House, New Haven Habitat for Humanity, the Child and Family Agency of Southeastern Connecticut, and the Old Lyme-Phoebe Griffin Noyes Library.
Lynn received her B.A. in Economics and English from Wellesley College.
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Kristine Johnson, Child Welfare Advocate
Kristine Johnson joined the Southeastern Connecticut Center for Juvenile Justice, Inc., as a Child Welfare Advocate, with over ten years of experience working with families in a variety of settings.
Kristine obtained a degree in Psychology from Quinnipiac College, with a minor in Sociology and a concentration in Child Development. This degree has led to an array of opportunities working in Child Development and providing a myriad of services for families.
Kristine worked in several Child Care settings as a Head Teacher, where she was able to teach and assess children from birth to late elementary school aged children. Kristine also worked at the Department of Children and Families, where she provided Case Management services to intact and separated families, while often participating in court related hearings.
Before joining SECCJJ, Kristine worked at Madonna Place, a multi-program Agency, for almost seven years. Kristine started her career at Madonna Place as an In-Home worker, providing direct services to families. She then became supervisor of the Family Support Center, which led to her supervising several of Madonna Place’s programs for almost 6 years. Kristine has facilitated a variety of classes, conducted assessments on children and parents, supervised visits and organized and provided direct services, as just a few examples of her responsibilities at Madonna Place. Kristine brings an extensive background in social work with her to SECCJJ.
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Sheila Perry, Child Welfare Advocate
Child Welfare Advocate Sheila Perry joined the Southeastern Connecticut Center for Juvenile Justice, Inc. with over twenty years of experience in mental health and adolescent services.
Sheila began her career as a mental health worker at Norwich State hospital where for five years she worked with individuals suffering from mental illness and drug addiction. Ms. Perry then went to work at First Step, now Sound Community Services, where she rose from case manager to Senior Case Manager Supervisor during her fifteen years there. While there, she oversaw the day to day operation of the case management department, was the representative to the community hospitals, and assessed clients upon admission.
Just prior to joining SECCJJ, Sheila worked at a group home with adolescent girls, providing them with guidance and services to meet their needs. Sheila brings a wealth of knowledge and resources to SECCJJ.
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