July 17, 2015
LANSING, Mich. – Gov. Rick Snyder today announced the reappointments of Thomas Cranmer and Judith Gracey, both of West Bloomfield, and Thomas McNeill, of Grosse Pointe, to the Appellate Defender Commission.
The seven-member commission develops a system of indigent appellate defense services and oversees the State Appellate Defender Office and Michigan Appellate Assigned Counsel System.
“I am happy to reappoint these three individuals,” Snyder said. “They have been great assets to the commission, and I look forward to their continued contributions.”
Cranmer is senior principal at Miller, Canfield, Paddock and Stone, P.L.C, and heads the firm’s Litigation and Dispute Resolution Group. He is a former assistant prosecuting attorney in Oakland County and a former assistant U.S. attorney. Cranmer is past president of the State Bar of Michigan, as well as the Oakland County Bar Foundation. He is listed in The Best Lawyers in America and is a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers. Cranmer earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Michigan and a law degree from Ohio Northern University. He continues to represent the Michigan Supreme Court.
Gracey has spent more than 24 years as a sole practitioner in Michigan. She also served as a magistrate for the 48th District Court in Oakland County for more than eight years. Gracey is a former assistant city attorney for the city of Flint and adjunct professor at Oakland University and Madonna University. Gracey earned a bachelor's degree from Brown University and a law degree from the University of Cincinnati. She continues to represent the State Bar of Michigan.
McNeill is a partner at the Detroit offices of Dickinson Wright, PLLC, where he has practiced for over 30 years. He serves as the Detroit Metropolitan Bar Association, and as a DMBA board member. McNeill earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Notre Dame and a law degree from the University of Virginia. He continues to represent the Michigan Supreme Court.
Appointees serve four-year terms expiring May 24, 2019. Appointments are not subject to the advice and consent of the state Senate.
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