The Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles is the biggest and yet frontline law firm for more than 2 million low-income people in the the Los Angeles area. They have four Self-Help Legal Access Centers: Inglewood, Long Beach, Santa Monica, and Torrence. They hold legal clinics in chuches, schools, public housing developments, and senior centers.
LAFLA is a place that people turn to when there is a threatening situation involving their shelter, job security, livelihood, health and well-being. This shows how dependable LAFLA is. They serve over 14,000 clients annually, and assist 55,000 other individuals through referrals, education and other services. Am I the only that's amazed? Well, here's a story of a patient that was helped incredibly by LAFLA.
Jimmy, a paranoid schizophrenic, living in his one-room studio in Santa Monica for 11 years who has the benefit of a Section 8 voucher. Unfortunately, he is visibly disabled with a number of both physical and mental disabilities as well. Due to all of this, the building managers at his home "disliked" him for being obnoxious when knocking on their door or is unable to instantly pick up small objects he drops in the hallway because of his loss od mobility. This led to the management issuing a 3-day notice to quit because he burned his dinner and the smell was offensive. The landlord also terminated Jimmy's Section 8 contract with the Santa Monica Housing Authority. An attorney from the Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles argued that Jimmy had disabilities under state and federal Fair Housing Laws, but management kept refusing to reinstate the contract. This was totally unfair to Jimmy because he would then have to pay the full price with all the dissabilities. So then the Legal Aid Foundation collaborated with the Housing Rights Center and soon prepared litigation and discovery began and a demand letter was sent to the landlord insisting that Jimmy's Housing Authority contract be reinstated. In a blink of an eye, the landlord requested a new contract for Jimmy.
LAFLA to the rescue!
One of these incredible helpful attorneys is Karla Barrow, Managing Attorney of the office. She has been with LAFLA for nine and a half years. Straight from Law School to Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles. Karla began as a staff attorney doing government benefits. She was a patient's advocate back in Law School which represented individuals who had been picked up on 72-hour psychiatric holds. "Through this experience, I realized how insensitivities to culture, race, mental illness, gender, language, socio-economic status, etc, greatly influenced a person's access to our legal system," Karla stated. "I am very happy here, and proud of the work we do and of the clients we serve."
Visit www.lafla.org for more information.
Leave a comment