When I first met Stacy, she told me the father of their 1-year-old daughter had threatened to end the child’s life. He told her if she made him pay child support, it would be the worst thing she ever did.

I used to be one of those people who believed the stereotypes surrounding domestic violence. I would wonder, “Why doesn’t she just leave?” “Maybe she started it,” or “Why does she keep going back to him if he is going to continue abusing her?”

Quick snapshot: Ashley Prebula Frazier Heintz. I went to The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where I received a B.A. in Political Science and minors in Social & […]

Please join us in welcoming Atlanta Volunteer Lawyers Foundation’s two newest staff members, Katie King and Camille Millar. We’re thrilled that they’ve joined our ranks. Katie King, Administrative Assistant: When […]

Give us your best elevator pitch – what does AVLF mean to you? Safe and stable homes and families. Easier said than done. What do you do when a friend calls and says her spouse has been abusing her for years? How do you respond when you find out her hand had not been cut in an accident at the house (as you previously understood) but had been cut to the bone holding the blade of a knife to prevent it from being pushed into her sternum by her husband? What is your reaction when you find out how many times her life had been threatened with a gun and how many times she had feared for the safety of her children because of her husband’s abuse? How do you process the range of emotions when you learn the physical abuse was just the tip of the iceberg and the emotional and mental abuse was far worse? I got that call.

Our client’s hands shook as she held her phone to the courtroom microphone to play, for all to hear, a voicemail left by her ex-boyfriend. That voicemail demonstrated the fear and emotional pain he had caused her over the course of their relationship and after they were no longer together. It was clearly very difficult for her to listen to the insults directed toward her in the voicemail. When her shaking hands accidentally stopped the playback of the recording, the entire courtroom seemed to feel her pain as she had to replay the message from the beginning.

Jenni Stolarski, Safe Families Office alum and DeKalb County Chief Assistant Solicitor-General, posted the following text on her Facebook page following the recent Amber Alert, and she was kind enough to let us share it with you. We hope you enjoy reading it as much as we did!

Thank you, Michael. Unless perhaps you are Donald Trump, it is hard to listen to someone overstate your virtues, but thank you for believing at least some of what you just shared. Thank you for making my job so easy and so much fun. And please know that I learn as much from you as you claim you do from me. For example, because of you, I know the difference between Run The Jewels and Run DMC, and between Killer Mike and Mike Tyson. Thank you for pumping up my street creds!  You are a great lawyer and a great friend.

Rick Deane, it is an honor to share the day with you. Congratulations on all that you and your firm have accomplished, and I thank you for joining with Walt Davis and Ashley Heintz and Ken Smith and others who make Jones Day and AVLF such a strong partnership.

Give us your best elevator pitch – what does AVLF mean to you? Our nation’s most serious gap in professional services is providing legal advice and representation to people just above the poverty line. They do not usually qualify for public assistance but they cannot afford an attorney’s services, even for crises such as domestic violence and evictions. AVLF is one of the key organizations bridging that gap in Fulton and Clayton Counties.

Whenever anyone asks me what I do for a living, I have a standard answer: “I work for a non-profit that provides pro bono legal services to low-income Atlantans.” If it seems like the person is still listening, I’ll throw in, “We do civil work – typically landlord-tenant and domestic violence issues.”

That’s not really what I do, though.

How did you get involved with AVLF? Maggie Hanrahan, my predecessor on the Board, asked me whether I was interested in getting involved. I told her, “Absolutely!”

How did you get involved with AVLF? I attended a pro bono training program hosted at King & Spalding by the former head of the Safe Families Office, Liz Whipple. She was fantastic! I soon learned her infectious enthusiasm for AVLF is a common attribute of the staff.