UB Law Volunteers Discuss Their Katrina 'Legal Clean-Up' Experiences Jan. 18
January 15, 2007
Contact: University Relations
Phone: 410.837.6190
The University of Baltimore School of Law will host a noontime panel discussion on Thursday, Jan. 18 for those students, members of the faculty and alumnae who just returned from an extensive volunteer mission to New Orleans to provide legal assistance for victims of Hurricane Katrina. The event is free and open to the public.
The discussion, "Cease and Desist: UB Law Intervenes on Behalf of Victims of Hurricane Katrina," will take place beginning at noon in the fifth floor multipurpose room of the UB Student Center, 21 W. Mt. Royal Ave. Panelists will include law students Angela Novy (lead student organizer), Rebecca Celotto, Mahasin El-Amin, Thane Erickson, Alexa Goransson, Elizabeth Hiatt, and Jessica Vollmer; Prof. Stephen Harris (lead supervisor of the students), Visiting Prof. Michele Alexandre, Prof. Sheldon Laskin; and School of Law alumnae Brenda Holley, J.D. '02, and Tovia Edmonds, J.D. '03 (both assistant public defenders with the City of Baltimore). All the members of the group were in New Orleans from Jan. 5 through 12 as part of the Student Hurricane Network, a national organization working with law schools across the United States to provide long-term volunteer assistance to communities affected by Hurricane Katrina.
Panelists will discuss their efforts to strengthen the city's ravaged legal systems on both the civil and criminal fronts. They volunteered in courtroom and administrative office settings, helping to restore a sense of order after more than a year of struggle and setbacks. Records of thousands of legal proceedings, for example, were lost in the flood that followed the hurricane's devastation of the city on August 29-30, 2005. Many cases remain unresolved, complicating the recovery efforts of residents who may also have lost family members, property, jobs, or their status in the community as a result of the historic storm.
University of Baltimore School of Law Dean Gilbert Holmes said the discussion will offer a chance for the UB community and the public to better understand the magnitude of the "legal clean-up" and recovery.
"Part of our UB family put themselves on the front lines of this long comeback from the flood," Holmes said. "They have important stories to tell us, and we have special thanks to express to them."
The University of Baltimore is a member of the University System of Maryland and comprises the School of Law, the Yale Gordon College of Liberal Arts and the Merrick School of Business.