Diana, 2L

I've been in El Paso, TX for almost two weeks.  I am living at a place called Casa Puente which provides short-term housing to volunteers who come to El Paso.  The Director of Casa Puente was nice enough to pick me up from the airport.  Upon arriving at Casa Puente, I met three other housemates who are also doing volunteer work at El Paso.  Two of my housemates are law students at University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill and one is an undergrad student at Georgetown University. They are also interning at a non-profit legal service provider that assists persons seeking asylum and children detained by the government. Luckily, Casa Puente is centrally located near the downtown area of El Paso, it's close to the Juarez Border and its only six blocks from my job.

In Casa Puente, I have my own room and share a bathroom with one other person.  The house comes fully furnished, I only had to bring clothes, shoes, and toiletries.  There is a fully stocked kitchen and a barbeque grill on the porch.  To top it off the rent is only $400 a month.  I spent the first Sunday grilling some kabobs and drinking some homemade sangria!

I am working at Paso Del Norte Civil Rights Project (PDNCRP).  Check out their website for more information: www.TexasCivilRightsProject.org. PDNCRP focuses on litigating issues involving Civil Rights, Disability Rights, Immigrant Rights, Prisoners Rights and Economic Justice issues.  There are four law clerks including myself working at this organization for the summer. 

My first day consisted of a training program followed by reading the training binder. The rest of the week I worked mainly on legal research pertaining to ADA issues (American with Disabilities Act) and on domestic violence issues.  Due to confidentiality obligations, I can't elaborate too much on the specifics of my assignments but I will try to share as much as I can. In addition, I visited the Federal Courthouse in El Paso to witness my supervisor being sworn into a new district in Texas.  Just to clarify, in order for an attorney to practice in a certain district he/she has to be sworn in by a Federal Judge. 

This is it for now. Till next time and enjoy some of the El Paso pictures located below.

My House in El Paso, TX.   

My job at El Paso, TX.

Mural inside the office.

Posted by Diana at 8:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I apologize for the absence but between studying for finals and preparing for my trip to El Paso, Tx I've had no time to blog. But now I am back and prepared to blog about my first Co-Op experience. I purchased a camera so expect more pictures on my blog.

I am currently at LaGuardia Airport in NYC waiting for my flight to El Paso, Tx. I am very excited to start my Co-Op on Monday. Honestly, I am a little nervous about my skills and capabilities, but I will keep a positive attitude and just appreciate the learning experience. The whole purpose of a Co-Op is to hone my skills so I will jump in without hesitation.

First Year of law school is over! I am still recovering and trying to get acclimated to normal life. My last final was a eight hour take home exam for Criminal Justice. Following the exam, I proceeded to prepare for my move to Jamaica Plain, MA where I will live when I return in the fall.

My mother and sister came to visit for two days and I focused on doing some tourist things in Boston. We did the Duck Tour of Boston, (I highly recommend this tour because it includes a land and water tour of Boston). I arrived to NJ on Tuesday and focused on preparing for my trip to El Paso, Tx, by shopping at NYC for some work attire. It felt so good to return to NYC. I relished in the experience of walking around NYC. It felt good hearing the sounds of the honking horns from the taxicabs and the rustling of the subways. Oh home sweet home!

El Paso updates to come soon!

Posted by Diana at 12:32 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)