Khyla Craine

Khyla D. Craine serves as the Deputy Legal Director for the Michigan Department of State, where her responsibilities encompass guiding the Secretary on various aspects of the department’s legal, policy, and operational matters. Her efforts are particularly focused on data privacy, expanding government access for marginalized communities, and overseeing internal contracting processes. Since January 2021, Ms. Craine has managed the ID/Driver License Project for returning citizens and foster care youth, which has successfully facilitated the issuance of driver’s licenses or state IDs to 20,000 returning citizens since September 2020.

In 2022, Ms. Craine spearheaded the Department’s Road to Restoration Clinics, a significant initiative aimed at helping residents understand and navigate the process to regain their driving privileges. This initiative has conducted over thirty clinics and has aided approximately 9,000 Michiganders in their efforts to restore their driving rights. Her work continues to impact many by directly addressing and removing barriers to essential services.

Ms. Craine’s academic background includes degrees from Howard University School of Law and South Carolina State University. She has also contributed to academic discourse through her co-authored article in 2014 titled “Returning Citizens: How Shifting Law and Policy in Maryland Will Help Citizens Who Return from Incarceration,” published in the University of Baltimore Law School’s Law Forum. Outside of her professional endeavors, she is actively involved in her community, holding memberships in Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., where she serves on the National Social Action Commission, the Junior League of Ann Arbor, Michigan, and the National Bar Association.