HALO CITATION CLINIC TO BE HELD AT NEW DIRECTIONS ON JUNE 16
 

Los Angeles, CA — On a day when the Los Angeles Superior Court is closed due to budget cuts, justice still will be delivered in L.A. County.  Representatives from the Office of the City Attorney and the County Superior Court will contribute their time on June 16 – the next furlough day for the courts – to conduct a HALO Citation Clinic for current or former members of the U.S. Armed Forces in the City of Los Angeles. 

The HALO Citation Clinic will be held at New Directions, Inc., a nonprofit that serves veterans on the West Los Angeles VA campus. Other participants will include veterans’ benefits advocates from Public Counsel Law Center, Inner City Law Center, Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, the Weingart Center Association, and several private family law providers.  The clinic will help veterans resolve outstanding pedestrian tickets and citations in exchange for community service, and will also provide a one-stop resource for legal services.

“The citation clinic is an important aspect the City Attorney’s HALO program,” says Assistant Supervising City Attorney Songhai Miguda-Armstead.  “HALO (Homeless Alternatives to Living On the streets) is a way of delivering justice to populations who may not realize they can help themselves by taking classes, or working with a case manager, or doing community service in lieu of paying fines.  Also, some homeless men and women are simply unaware of outstanding citations, or unclear about what municipality has issued citations to them.”

Attorney Ben Gales of Public Counsel Law Center works from an office at New Directions and helped organize the HALO Citation Clinic. “In the current financial crisis,” says Gales, “creative use of existing resources – in effect leveraging our partnerships – is what is helping make alternative sentencing efforts for veterans work here in Los Angeles.  HALO is an example of a creative justice program that is one tool to help veterans resolve infractions and misdemeanors that are generally a manifestation of their homelessness.” 

The clinic will take place from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at New Directions’ Regional Opportunity Center (Building 116 on the grounds of the West Los Angeles V.A. campus, off Wilshire Blvd).  Current or former members of the U.S. Armed Forces who would like to resolve outstanding pedestrian tickets/citations are welcome to walk in without appointments.  If possible, citation notices should be brought along to the clinic.  Lunch will be provided.

For more information about the HALO Citation Clinic, or for directions to Building 116, please contact Ben Gales at (310) 914-4045, ext. 154.