FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Adrienne Wheeler 504-561-7312; awheeler@louisianaappleseed.org
June 14, 2019, New Orleans, LA – Louisiana Appleseed worked in coordination with volunteers to create a Domestic Abuse Bench Card for the judiciary to use as a reference during court proceedings.
"Domestic abuse is an important issue that seriously affects the safety of individuals and their community,” explains Louisiana Appleseed’s Program Director, Stephanie Beaugh. “This resource guide is intended to assist Judges and their staff with some of the many issues that arise in domestic abuse cases so they may safely and more efficiently dispense with justice."
The Bench Card provides a vital information on domestic abuse laws, the procedures necessary for filing protective orders, victims’ rights, and other resources. With this Bench Card, judges will be knowledgeable on all of the ways domestic violence victims can access justice in Louisiana state courtrooms. The courtroom can become another form of abuse for survivors of domestic violence, but with Louisiana Appleseed’s effort to support courtroom administration of justice the likelihood of that is diminished.
The creation and distribution of this Bench Card is a component of Louisiana Appleseed’s Access to Justice Program that focuses on ensuring fairness and equity in all aspects of the criminal and civil justice systems. This is one of a number of projects that Appleseed is working on in order to provide domestic violence victims access to justice. Support for this project was provided by the Louisiana Bar Foundation.
Louisiana Appleseed is a statewide nonprofit organization that partners with volunteers and community organizations in order solve systematic issues at their root cause. Our goal is to advance social justice by effecting change at the policy, or systemic, level. Louisiana Appleseed’s work focuses on improving access to justice, opportunity, and education.
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