Page 4 - Florida Sentinel 9-25-15 Edition

Features
‘Project HELP’ Assists Homeless With Legal Issues
BY LEON B. CREWS Sentinel Staff Writer
In 2004 in New Orleans, newly appointed federal Dis- trict Court Judge Jay Zainey, along with his fellow judges, served meals at a local shelter. While serving the meals, Judge Zainey thought how much more an attorney could do to help the homeless, and how that service could change people’s lives. That was the birth of Project H.E.L.P. (Homeless Education and Lit- eracy Project).
Last year, Attorney Jenifer Roeper brought that concept to Metropolitan Min- istries, and now every Tuesday night, a group of attorneys from the area come to their Florida Avenue campus to talk to residents who may need legal help.
“The clients don’t need to make an appointment to see the attorneys,” said Shawn LaFata, Associate Director of Communications for Metropol- itan Ministries.
“The cases the attorneys hear vary from criminal to cus- tody issues, and also immigra- tion problems. They also get information on other places
they can go for help. “Sometimes, the attorneys
take the cases directly into the courtroom, and it’s all pro bono.”
LaFata said they were elated when Atty. Roeper brought the program to their facility, and their clients have taken full advantage of the free service.
“The attorneys rotate, but firms all over the city are asked if they would be interested in being a part of this. Generally, we have 4-to-5 attorneys with their paralegals at our facility on Tuesday nights.”
LaFata said the service is available to anyone in the com- munity, not just their clients, but they mostly cater to the homeless community.
“There is a screening process to make sure the legal service the client is seeking is available, and we’ve served more than 150 clients already this year. We average 6-to-7 clients every Tuesday night.”
LaFata said the service is free, and they don’t have to pay any kind of fee to have the at- torneys come.
“This service has expanded to 34 cities now, and we don’t’ see it going anywhere.”
Local Black Caucus Group Addresses Police Citizens Review Board Issue
In a letter to City Council Chair Frank Reddick dated September 16, 2015, the Hills- borough County Democratic Black Caucus (HCDBC) ad- dresses their concerns over the Citizen’s Review Board se- lection process.
“The Hillsborough County Democratic Black Caucus is a political organization with members who are first and foremost concerned citizens that take pride in supporting the community,” said HCDBC President, Robin Lockett.
“As the only Black Demo- cratic Political arm in this community, we would be re- miss to avoid this opportunity to stand up for concerns of the community as it relates to the Citizens Review Board. We be- lieve fair representation of the community appointed to the Board is paramount to its suc- cess.”
Lockett said the mission of the HCDBC is to ensure the Black community achieves this realization by making sure their voices are heard and taken seriously.
“We will remind politicians who come to the Black com- munity with many promises yet once in office the agenda of others take precedent over the elected official’s pledge.
“We do this by giving vot- ers the facts and a report card
ROBIN LOCKETT President, HCDBC
of how elected officials have voted on important issues that impact the Black community. We provide this information so the community can make an informed decision and sup- port the elected official who has represented our issues when they go to the ballot box on Election Day.”
Lockett said the HCDBC has listened to all sides of this issue, and they have decided to go on record in full support of the resolution offered by Council Chair Reddick.
The HCDBC points out that Council Chair Red- dick’s solution offers several things:
The workshop will allow a conversation to continue and all parties to be involved in the process, not just one indi-
vidual making the deci- sion for the entire Black community.
There are seven City Council members that represent different dis- tricts, so what better way for each Council member to appoint someone from the area they represent to provide that true repre- sentation of the commu- nity.
Within the resolution, the Mayor will have the opportunity to appoint four representatives, in which two of the four will be alternates.
“We believe the original resolution presented by Mayor Buckhorn was in- sulting and insensitive to the Black community and pro- vided no true option to resolve this already heated situation,” said Lockett.
“Among other things, it has caused a continued dis- trust in the Black community for the process. We are cau- tiously optimistic that each person will do what’s right by the people. Members of the HCDBC are unified and taking note of how our elected offi- cials are representing the Black community. It is our job to educate the community, and we will continue to do it well.”
PAGE 4-A FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2015