PRESS RELEASE
Wesley Community Center named as third site of "Virtual Courthouse"
San Antonio Bar Association’s Community Justice Program will provide pro bono services; immigration issues Q&A forum to be a “first”
On Tuesday, October 25, Wesley Community Center, located on the city’s south side, will become the third site of the Community Justice Program, a pro-bono effort of San Antonio’s legal community that creates a “virtual courthouse” for low-income individuals. On the following evening, Wednesday, October 26, the first-ever Immigration Q&A Forum will be held at the same location with immigration attorneys.
“We are thrilled to be part of this wonderful program,” said Raul Ahumada, Manager of Wesley Community Center. “The Columbia Heights neighborhood we serve has more than 6,000 families within a two-mile radius; many are single parent households earning less than $15,000 per year. There is a definite need for these donated legal services.” In order to qualify for the Community Justice Program, a person’s income must be at 125% or less of the Federal Poverty Guidelines.
The Community Justice Program (CJP) was created in 2002 by Judge Karen H. Pozza and Justice Phylis Speedlin in answer to the state Supreme Court’s challenge to Texas lawyers to bring more legal services to the poor. In an evening clinic, up to twenty individuals meet with a corresponding number of attorneys for uncontested civil cases. These usually involve family law matters, including divorce, guardianship proceedings, chapter 7 bankruptcies, simple landlord/tenant disputes, probate matters and wills. The cases are filed, and in some instances, taken to hearing that same evening before Bexar County District Court judges who volunteer to work after normal court hours. The CJP does not accept criminal cases, cases involving family violence or those requiring immediate action.
At the October 25 clinic, a presentation on general topics will take place from 5:30 to 6:00 p.m. followed by one-on-one consultations from 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. with attorneys from the law firm of Thornton, Biechlin, Segrato, Reynolds & Guerra, L.C. The presiding judge will be Judge Joe Frazier Brown. Other judges in attendance will include Justice Phylis Speedlin, Justice Karen Angelini and Judge Karen Pozza, along with District Court, Criminal Court and Appellate Court Judges.
“We are very excited about opening a third location in San Antonio. With legal clinics already in place at the David Robinson Carver Academy on the east side and at St. Mary’s Center for Legal and Social Justice on the west side, the opening of the Wesley Community Center location allows us to now serve the citizens of the south side of Bexar County,’’ noted co-founder Justice Phylis Speedlin. “Eventually, the San Antonio Bar Association would like to open a fourth location to serve the north side of San Antonio. One of our key objectives has always been to provide free legal services and night court to low-income residents in their own neighborhood locations.”
In addition to the second evening Immigration Forum, which was recommended by the Wesley Community Center’s management, this “virtual courthouse” will also be unique in that the staff of Wesley will pre-screen applicants and provide intake services in advance of the evening clinic. For the other two existing clinics, this service is provided by Texas RioGrande Legal Aid.
“As a mission of Methodist Healthcare Ministries, Wesley Community Center exists to serve a person from a body, mind and spirit perspective,” said Kevin Moriarty, CEO of Methodist Healthcare Ministries, the largest private funding source for community health care in South Texas and co-owner of Methodist Healthcare System. “It is appropriate that, in addition to the community center’s many outreach services for people of all ages, the Wesley Primary Care Clinic and the onsite daycare run by the Daughters of Charity, legal services will now be available to people within this traditionally underserved neighborhood. We commend the San Antonio Bar Association for its vision in creating and managing the Community Justice Program. We are proud to now be part of it.”
Press release provided by San Antonio Bar Association