Stories




Mr. H
Zara Lukens, an attorney at Public Defender Services of Lane County, was inspired to start FLCPD after one of her clients encountered a difficult situation. Mr. H was ordered to complete 35 days of work crew as a condition of his probation. He lived out of county, but because of the COVID-19 pandemic, there were no options for transferring his work crew to the city where he lived. Mr. H was willing to tent camp in Eugene (in December) while completing his work crew obligation, but his camping gear would have been stolen if he had left it for an 8-hour day of work crew. Zara decided to pay for a modest hotel room, near the jail, so that Mr. H could complete his work crew without the obstacles created by his lack of housing in Eugene. She raised funds from friends and family members to pay for the hotel, and Mr. H completed his work crew without missing a day.
Ms. K
Ms. K, a mentally ill person, was deemed not competent to proceed with her case, and the court ordered that she be transferred to a mental health treatment facility. Due to the limited space at the facility, Ms. K had to wait in the jail for months before she could be admitted. Ms. K was often distraught and confused about why she was in jail. She told her attorney that she wasn’t getting enough to eat, and that she didn’t have money on her books to call her loved ones. Her attorney applied for $50 for Ms. K’s jail “books,” and Ms. K’s mood improved, making her jail stay a bit more bearable until she could be admitted to the treatment facility.
Mr. B
Mr. B had never been charged with a crime before, and he was worried about keeping his record clean. Although he had a good case for trial, when the DA offered a diversion – the opportunity to participate in a restorative justice program in exchange for a dismissal of the case – Mr. B. agreed. However, there was also a financial element – Mr. B. would have to pay a $100 fee before the dismissal would take effect. Mr. B was could not afford the fee, so his attorney applied for funding to cover that cost and ensure that Mr. B could complete his diversion.
Mr. R
Mr. R struggled with his metal health and violated a restraining order during a difficult period. Although he had regularly scheduled mental health appointments through a local organization, he was not always able to make his appointments due to lack of transportation. We provided his attorney funding for a bus pass so that transportation issues would no longer keep him from accessing the treatment he needed to maintain stability.