St. Cloud Area Legal Services

One Story:

“I need help, but I’m afraid to tell anyone. Do you promise you won’t tell that I told?”

St. Cloud Legal Aid Attorney Sarah Hennesy assured the caller through several phone contacts that their conversation was protected by attorney-client privilege. Finally, the woman told Sarah that her abuser, a convicted felon, was violating his no-contact order. He threatened to kill both her and her children if she reported him.

Together, the client and Sarah developed a plan for the court’s surveillance officer to make a well-timed, unscheduled visit. The officer brought the police, and the abuser was arrested and put in jail for violating the terms of his conditional release.

Sarah is part of a unique and innovative partnership between Mid-Minnesota Legal Assistance’s (MMLA) St. Cloud office and the Stearns County Domestic Violence Court. The DV Court is a project that involves the County Attorney, judges, probation officers, victim services, county law enforcement, and Legal Aid. When advising Stearns County Attorney Janelle Kendall in the early planning stages, a consultant from the Center for Court Innovation in New York, said:

“The thing that will change your world is a Legal Aid lawyer.”

Now, when a felon enters the DV court, the victim’s contact information is sent immediately to Sarah.

“Attorney-client privilege is key,” says Sarah. “These women are mandated to testify in criminal court against the abuser, and most want no involvement whatsoever. I start by saying that I am a civil attorney and do not work in the prosecutor’s office. I explain the difference between criminal and civil law.”

Research shows that the level of availability of legal services in the county of residence has a significant, proportional effect on the likelihood that an individual woman is abused. Less availability of legal services leads to greater likelihood of abuse.

“They often decline help on the initial contact,” Sarah says. “But they may call back in a week, or even months later.” Help with the most immediate problems, usually not directly connected with the abuse, provides the first thread of trust. Sarah helped one woman whose utilities had been turned off. Several weeks later, the woman called back to ask for help with a divorce.

Since its inception in April of 2009, the program has helped 76 victims of felony abusers with divorce, custody, grandparent visitation, paternity, child support, name change, public assistance, housing, mortgage issues, health care, advice regarding termination of parental rights, Social Security or disability law, utilities, debt collection, and more.

As trust builds, clients begin to seek advice on police and/or criminal procedures, orders for protection, offenses by the abuser, and testifying in DV court. Some women go on to access other resources such as shelters, counseling, and education. The thread of trust expands and multiplies, supported by a larger community. County Attorney Kendall says, “We do all we can to remove the abuser from the situation. We’ve gotten better at locking the abusers up, but that doesn’t solve the problem. After release, he is back and so is she. Now, we look at the entire system. Rather than asking the victim of the repeat offender, ‘What is wrong with you?’ our partnership with Legal Aid enables us to ask, ‘What happened to you, and what do you need?’”

St. Cloud Area Legal Services provides legal advocacy for Minnesotans in Benton, Chisago, Isanti, Mille Lacs, Morrison, Sherburne, Stearns, Todd and Wright counties.

To learn more about Legal Aid and the people we serve, go to www.mylegalaid.org.