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Fourth Annual Citation for Special Achievement in Public Service

- Location -
New York County Lawyers Association
14 Vesey Street
New York, NY 10007
(518) 487-5571

The Committee on Attorneys in Public Service

cordially invites you to a luncheon from 12:00 - 2:00 p.m.

Fourth Annual Citation for Special Achievement in Public Service

and

Covering Marriage Equality:  A Look Back

Presented by Casey Seiler and Jimmy Vielkind of the Albany Times Union

Come celebrate the achievements of our 2012 Citation winners Jonathan A. Darche and Karen J. Freedman.  Meet members of NYSBA's Committee on Attorneys in Public Service and colleagues.  NYSBA members and non-members are welcome to attend.

RSVP by September 12th to:  caps@nysba.org or (518) 487-5571

Jonathan A. Darche, Esq.  Assistant District Attorney, Queens County District Attorneys Office  In addition to his duties as an assistant district attorney in the Narcotics Investigations Bureau of the Queens County District Attorney's office, for the past five years, Jonathan has volunteered his time to the Youth Court of Queens County.  The Youth Court is an innovative program that helps two different sets of young people in Queens County.  The program takes gifted and motivated high school students and gives them comprehensive instruction in legal theory and practical courtroom skills by working with legal practitioners.  Once they have "graduated," the student-lawyers are assigned cases involving children diverted from family court.  These "defendants" are represented by student lawyers who are advised by attorneys donating their time, but when the trial occurs, the student-lawyers are on their own.  From case to case, the student-lawyers switch roles from prosecutor, to defense attorney, to judge.   Most importantly, the student-lawyers often serve as role models for the "defendants."  It is always a proud moment when a former defendant enrolls in the program to become a "student-lawyer."  Jonathan serves as instructor to the students when they are getting their initial training and advises student lawyers during their cases.  In addition to his work with the Youth Court, Jonathan also participates in STARTrack, an outreach program dedicated to educating at risk youths about the risks of gun violence.

Karen J. Freedman, Esq.  Executive Director, Lawyers For Children  Karen Freedman is the founder and Executive Director of Lawyers For Children Inc.  Since founding LFC 28 years ago, Ms. Freedman has created several projects at LFC to serve particularly vulnerable young people in the foster care system.  These include iniatives on behalf of Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender and Questioning youth, young people who have been sexually abused, children living in homes where domestic violence is present, youth aging out of foster care, youth in care who suffer from mental illness, young people in foster care who require specialized educational avocacy, and immigrant youth in foster care.  In addition. LFC has participaed in several important class action cases on behalf of youth in foster care and maintains a division of LFC devoted exclusively to impact litigation and child welfare policy.  Before establishing LFC, Ms. Freedman was a staff attorney with the Juvenile Rights Division of the Legal Aid Society and a Law Clerk in the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.  Ms. Freedman received her BA from Wesleyan University and her JD from New York University School of Law where she was a Root Tilden Scholar and a Hays Civil Liberties Fellow.

Covering Marriage Equality:  A Look Back

Casey Seiler and Jimmy Vielkind will bring us front and center during the hectic final weeks of the 2011 session - specifically the battle over marriage equality - to explain how they and their Capitol colleagues responded to this rapidly changing national story, and how it felt to be in the Capitol as individuals with widely divergent viewpoints kept vigil - with chants and songs - during the historic debate.

Accommodations for Persons with Disabilities:
NYSBA welcomes participation by individuals with disabilities. NYSBA is committed to complying with all applicable laws that prohibit discrimination against individuals on the basis of disability in the full and equal enjoyment of its goods, services, programs, activities, facilities, privileges, advantages, or accommodations. To request auxiliary aids or services or if you have any questions regarding accessibility, please contact the New York State Bar Association at 800-582-2452 or caps@nysba.org.