NDS Detroit provides world-class holistic criminal defense service to the people of Wayne County.

No Wayne County resident should ever be convicted of a crime because they are poor. This is where NDS Detroit comes in. As part of a nationally-recognized indigent defense organization, it melds local Wayne County legal talent with a proven client support system to produce the very best outcomes.

NDS Detroit brings its model for providing unparalleled representation to clients facing felony charges.  The team takes the time to understand clients as people and meets their legal and social needs. Staff investigators uncover all available evidence, because no client should plead guilty before the facts are known. Staff social workers provide counseling, psychosocial support, and psychiatric and psychological referrals. Advocates assist with drug treatment placements and potential alternatives to incarceration. Attorneys zealously represent our clients at every turn in the legal process.

By taking all these needs into consideration, NDS Detroit disentangles clients from the criminal legal system once and for all. 30 years of practice show this integrated, holistic approach makes all the difference in clients’ lives. NDS Detroit is changing the game of public defense, establishing the city as a leader in the field. Through our partnership we will keep Wayne County’s families and communities together.

Kristine Longstreet, Managing Director, NDS Detroit

Kristine Longstreet is a Detroit native who attended the city’s public schools and obtained her law degree from the Thomas M. Cooley Law School in Lansing. Her first job after law school was as a public defender for Wayne County, where in nearly two decades she logged more than 18,000 hours of criminal litigation experience, including jury and bench trials.
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