LASP & Montco Public Defenders' Office collaborate to help clients navigate collateral consequences of criminal justice system
As part of a new public interest law collaboration, attorneys from Legal Aid of Southeastern PA and the Montgomery County Public Defender’s Office met virtually Dec. 1.
Top row (from left): Erica Briant, LASP Community Engagement Unit Supervising Attorney; Katy Cronin, Assistant Public Defender; and Jeffrey Matus, Assistant Public Defender. Middle row: Lauren Zitsch, Assistant Public Defender; Josh Thorn, Assistant Public Defender; and Greg Nester, Public Defender. Bottom row: Lily Austin, LASP Independence Fellow; and Carol Sweeney, Public Defender.
(Dec. 2020)
Arrests for criminal matters – even without conviction – often trigger civil legal issues. For example, being arrested and held can prompt loss of job and income, and make it impossible for someone to maintain housing. “There’s a snowball effect of consequences,” said Lily Austin, LASP Independence Fellow.
The collateral consequences of contact with the criminal justice system are far-reaching. “Upon contact with the criminal justice system, starting at arrest, residents not only face criminal consequences, but also the loss of life essentials like employment, benefits, housing, and family unity through civil legal issues that spring up because of clients’ circumstances, or by operation of law,” Austin said.
The fellowship, funded through the Independence Foundation in Philadelphia, is designed to connect clients in the Montgomery County Public Defender’s Office with civil legal services, to address such matters as family law issues, evictions, and appealing denials or terminations of public benefits.
Modeled on collaborations between civil legal aid and public defender organizations in major cities, Austin seeks to connect civil legal aid with public defense in suburban Montgomery County. Based in LASP’s Pottstown office, she is working with the Montgomery County Public Defender’s Office in Norristown and Pottstown as part of the Fellowship. Some of the goals are to:
Provide civil legal services as a form of “civil defense.” Intertwining criminal and civil legal issues threaten the loss of life essentials and cause displacement from community. Austin gave a hypothetical example of an individual who is detained pre-trial, and then is released on bail and has a pending criminal case. The client has fallen behind on rent, and then faces an eviction action. That individual also loses employment, applies for unemployment compensation and is denied. LASP attorneys can help defend against the eviction and represent the client to appeal the denial of unemployment.
Assist clients with collateral consequences. “Collateral consequences are legal ‘disabilities’ … usually resulting from a criminal conviction or specific sentence. These are not considered part of a defendant’s punishment under the law,” Austin said. “Civil legal assistance can also help clients avoid the loss of life essentials after their criminal cases have been disposed.”
By identifying a client’s potential civil legal issues earlier in the criminal case with the public defender’s office, LASP can address civil matters proactively while working within the guidelines provided through Legal Services Corp., LASP’s major federal funder. “The goal is a more holistic defense,” she said. “Legal Aid offers free civil legal assistance to eligible clients, but we are not always connecting with clients in this population when they need help.”
Two of the model programs, The Bronx Defenders and the Public Defender Service for the District of Columbia, Civil Legal Services Division, embed civil legal aid within the public defender’s office. To meet COVID-19 social distancing guidelines, Austin instead will hold virtual weekly office hours to discuss civil legal issues with public defenders’ clients. She also plans separate, virtual meetings with attorneys in the Office of Public Defender, to discuss the civil collateral consequences that clients can face upon conviction, or even before that stage. “For example, a person living in public housing or receiving a Section 8 voucher to help pay rent can face an eviction action or termination of voucher assistance because of certain ‘criminal activity,’ with such actions being possible before or without an actual conviction,” she noted, adding, “Conviction of certain offenses can lead to no longer being eligible to adopt or act as a foster parent, or receive financial aid for college, and more. The goal is to help clients avoid the imposition of collateral consequences or remove them.”
For more information about the partnership, contact Carol Sweeney (610-278-3308) or Greg Nester (610-278-3318) at the Montgomery County Public Defender’s Office, or Lily Austin at LASP (laustin@lasp.org).
The Independence Foundation Public Interest Law Fellowship Program supports free direct legal representation for disadvantaged residents of the Philadelphia region. More information on the fellowship is at: https://bit.ly/37ow89o.
Note: This story was written for Montgomery County Bar Association Sidebar magazine. Link will be provided upon publication.
It also appeared in LASP e-news.