Staff

Paul Day has been our Executive Director since 2008. He graduated from the University of Minnesota Law School in 1978. Paul has served as the District Court Judge for the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe, Senior Counsel for Honeywell, Inc., Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Minnesota, and was in private practice for several years. He is an enrolled member of the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe. Paul is married and has three grown children.

Chris Allery is the supervising attorney at ALS, and has been with ALS since 2005. Chris graduated from the University of North Dakota School of Law in 1999, and is a former judicial law clerk. He is a licensed attorney in the State of Minnesota, as well as the tribal courts of Mille Lacs, White Earth, Leech Lake, Red Lake, and Bois Forte. Chris is married, and his hobbies include watching baseball and playing video games.

Margaret Kinder is a staff attorney in our office and a graduate of the Hamline School of Law. She has worked at ALS since 2005. Margaret is a licensed attorney in Minnesota as well as the tribal courts of Red Lake, White Earth, and Leech Lake. She specializes in child welfare cases and is a former juvenile prosecutor and law clerk. In her spare time, she likes to bake.

Cody Nelson joined ALS as a staff attorney after graduating magna cum laude from the University of St. Thomas School of Law in 2006. Cody is a licensed attorney in Minnesota as well as the tribal courts of Red Lake, White Earth, and Leech Lake. He has been appointed by ALS to the board of directors for BI-CAP of Beltrami and Cass County since March 2009. Cody is married and enjoys watching movies..

Mary Shequen Smith has been a paralegal at ALS for over thirty years. Mary grew up in Cass County, Minnesota, and attended Bemidji State. Prior to joining ALS Mary worked at Legal Services of Northwest Minnesota. Mary is married and in her spare time enjoys spending time with family, as well as, cooking, gardening and being outside as much as possible. She considers it an honor to be part of ALS and looks forward to working with old and new friends.

Tina Harville is a paralegal in our Cass Lake office. Tina has her A.A. and A.S., and is currently pursuing a bachelor's degree in criminal justice at Bemidji State University. Tina has been with ALS as a paralegal for over four years. She specializes in Social Security administration hearings. Tina has three children, and her hobbies include music, movies, theatre, enjoying the outdoors, hiking, and swimming with friends and family.

Mary Ringhand is the paralegal in our Red Lake Office. Before joining ALS she was involved in tribal administration and education. She has a law degree from the University of Minnesota, and interned with Minneapolis Legal Aid working with ICWA and in public housing law. Mary is a youth worker and belongs to several community boards and committees. She is involved in Ojibwemowin preservation, and is working towards fluency.

Chari LaDuke is the office manager in our central office in Cass Lake. Chari has been employed with ALS since October 2006, and has been licensed as a Red Lake Nation Court Advocate since April of 2008. Chari is a descendent of the White Earth and Red Lake Bands of Chippewa Indians. Born and raised in Minnesota, Chari and her family make their home in Northern Minnesota. Chari was the Valedictorian of her High School class and attended Carleton College.

Brianna Ramsrud began working for ALS as a legal secretary in 2010. Brianna enjoys her job because she can relate to the needs of ALS clients. She says that her work at ALS has made her interested in becoming a paralegal. Brianna and her fiancee have two beautiful little girls. Brianna says her wonderful and supportive family motivates her to work hard at ALS every day.

Gregg Trautwein is our Financial Administrator. He has been on contract with ALS since 2003 providing accounting services. Gregg is a graduate of Moorhead State University and a CPA. Gregg is also the Administrator for Legal Services of Northwest Minnesota. In his spare time, he participates in triathlons, plays drums, and sings at Hope Lutheran Church. Gregg and his wife live in Fargo, North Dakota.