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February 11, 2005|Volume 33, Number 17



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Students' work on behalf of the community supported by Liman Fellowships

When Eliza Leighton graduates from the Law School this spring, she will head down the coast to spend a year working with CASA of Maryland, a community organization devoted to improving the quality of life of the Latino community.

Leighton was one of five individuals who were recently chosen to receive fellowships from the Arthur Liman Public Interest Program at the Law School. The grants allow Law School graduates to work full time for a year in any area of the legal profession devoted to the public interest.

At CASA of Maryland, Leighton -- who hails from Washington, D.C. -- will work with residents of Langley Park, a community primarily composed of low-wage immigrant residents. CASA of Maryland has recently helped organize three groups: a tenant group, a mobile food vendor group and a group of day laborers. Leighton will help those groups identify common legal problems and assist them in devising advocacy strategies. Her fellowship begins in September 2005.

The other 2005-2006 Liman Fellows are:

Jorge Baron '03 J.D. of Bogota, Colombia, who will work with New Haven Legal Assistance on a project to train immigrants and criminal defense counsel on the immigration consequences of a criminal conviction and how to mitigate those consequences. His work is part of a larger national effort among legal services providers to deal with the intersection of criminal, civil, and immigration law.

Kim Pattillo Brownson '02 J.D. of Los Angeles, California, who begins her fellowship in late fall with the ACLU of Southern California in Los Angeles. It will involve enforcement of a settlement in Williams v. State of California, a class action that challenged California's failure to provide adequate classrooms and educational materials.

Holly A. Thomas '04 J.D. of Spring Valley, California, who will work at the NAACP Legal Defense Fund in its New York office, where she will focus on the issue of juveniles serving sentences of life without possibility of parole. Her project will center on two states, Louisiana and Mississippi, both of which allow juveniles as young as 15 to be sentenced to life without possibility of parole, and both of which have a history of racial disparity in sentencing. She plans to gather sentencing data in order to prepare a media campaign and public education about this issue and develop a litigation strategy challenging the appropriateness of such sentences. Her fellowship begins in September 2005.

Sofia Yakren '04 of Queens, New York, will spend her fellowship year at the Urban Justice Center in New York. Using the Americans with Disabilities Act, she will address the New York City Human Resource Administration's failure to permit the mentally ill to use public assistance and Medicaid benefits to cover mental health services. Her project builds on preliminary work already underway at the Urban Justice Center. Her fellowship begins in October 2005.

The Arthur Liman Public Interest Program was established at the Law School in 1996 to honor the late Arthur Liman '57 J.D., a partner in the New York City law firm of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison. In addition to his work at the firm, Liman had a long and distinguished career as a public servant, including positions on the New York State Special Commission on Attica, the Legal Aid Society of New York, the Neighborhood Legal Services of Harlem, the Legal Action Center of New York City and the New York State Capital Defender's Office. He also served as special counsel to the U.S. Senate Select Committee on Secret Military Assistance to Iran and the Nicaraguan Opposition, also known as the Iran-Contra Committee.


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School of Forestry & Environmental Sciences dean delivers . . .

New Peabody exhibit devoted to the world's largest animals

In another Peabody display, guests can see species of plants that are pests

Designer's metal 'Tropical House' will be spotlight of exhibition

Researcher testing acupuncture's effectiveness in easing back pain


DIVINITY SCHOOL NEWS

Studies find that proteins in amniotic fluid are predictor of preterm labor

Renowned computational language expert to deliver Eero Saarinen Lecture

Library's 'Wake the Dream' program honors Yale's first Chinese alumnus

'Video as Advocacy' to be among topics at 'Rebellious Lawyering' event

Scientists find that smoking can impair memory . . .

Scientists call for study of vaccine's impact on shingles

Finland tops latest ranking of environmentally sound nations

'Intimate Partners' author to talk at Jonathan Edwards master's tea

Two authors win YCIAS book prizes

Students' work on behalf of the community supported by Liman Fellowships

Environmental leaders named F&ES visiting fellows for 2005-2006

Yale luminaries to share expertise for LEAP fundraiser

Sharing cultures through performance

Yale Books in Brief

Campus Notes


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