Why did you choose to work with the Criminal Law Clinic?
I was not originally planning on doing the Criminal Clinic, but I had a friend who had done it the year before who encouraged me to try it. It was totally outside of my comfort zone—I'm planning on doing corporate law after law school, and the thought of standing up in court terrified me. But I tried it anyway, and I'm so glad I did!
What was the first time you had to speak in front of a court like, and how did you learn to eventually do this with confidence?
The first time I spoke in court I had to have my supervising attorney, Eva Nilsen, write out everything I had to say to the judge. I know that's ridiculous, but I just didn't want to screw anything up! I'm not really sure when it was that I began feeling confident in court, but it was about three weeks into the program that I realized I didn't need to rely on Eva so much.
Have you been working as a defender or prosecutor? Why did you choose this role?
I worked as a defender in the Boston Municipal Court. I chose to work on the defense side because I wanted to help the indigent people of Boston. I feel like many of the clients our clinic handles are trapped in the criminal justice system.
Some of these clients are often very poor and addicted to drugs, and they keep getting arrested again and again. The punishments they receive don't really rehabilitate them. Even if our clients aren't addicted to drugs, if they have had prior involvement with the criminal justice system they're treated much harsher than if they were first-time offenders. Many of the DAs seem to have the impression that if our clients have been in trouble before then they probably did it this time, or that they need a harsher punishment just because they've made mistakes in the past.
What was your most memorable case, and why?
I helped a man who had a long record of open cases to close every one of them so he wouldn't lose his AIDS benefits from the government. Most of his cases were small—relating to registration of his motor vehicle, for example—but they had been open cases for over four years because he didn't have the money to pay the court costs. It was a memorable case because of how grateful my client was at the end of it all. And it felt good to help someone who really needed it.
Why is it important to represent cases pro bono?
As a student attorney in the Boston Municipal Court, I helped reach out to the indigent defendants who needed it, and I gained valuable advocacy experience that I would not have had otherwise.
What did you gain from participating in the program?
The program was the most difficult but also the most rewarding thing that I did in law school. I went from being scared of speaking in court to being able to communicate confidently and effectively. The work was real, which was scary because people's liberty was at stake, but it felt really good to help people who needed it. The sense of accomplishment is overwhelming.
What advice would you give to incoming students curious about the clinical programs?
I would tell them to get out there and do it! It's very refreshing to get out of the classroom and to handle real cases while in law school. I think I learned more than I ever could have in a classroom setting.
