St. John’s Law Launches In-House Defense and Advocacy Clinic

Last August, St. John’s Law launched the Defense and Advocacy Clinic under the direction of Professor Martin J. LaFalce, a former public defender. Offering an unrivaled opportunity for students to learn the law and build practical skills hands on, the Clinic operates from a well-appointed office suite that is also home to the Law School’s in-house Child Advocacy Clinic, Consumer Justice for the Elderly: Litigation Clinic, and Securities Arbitration Clinic.

Representing adults charged with misdemeanors in New York City Criminal Court, students in the one-semester Defense and Advocacy Clinic handle all aspects of a case: interviewing clients and witnesses; making bail arguments; conducting investigations; litigating discovery; negotiating with prosecutors and judges; appearing at hearings; and advising clients regarding immigration and other collateral consequences.

“I decided to participate in the Defense and Advocacy Clinic because I knew it was an important step on my path to becoming a public defender,” says Claire Frink ’23, who starts full time at the Dutchess County Public Defender’s Office this fall. “My desire to work in indigent criminal defense is not only the reason I came to St. John’s Law, but it’s integral to who I am as a person and as a law student. I knew that managing my own cases and developing legal strategies would give me the tools I need to succeed in a public defender’s office.”

Frink honed those tools through a range of assignments, including representing a member of the Queens community charged with a misdemeanor in Queens Criminal Court and assisting the Legal Aid Society’s Law Reform Unit. “Supporting Legal Aid, we visited Rikers Island twice and interviewed individuals who are being held there pre-trial about the inhumane and unsafe conditions they are experiencing,” she explains. “But we didn’t visit just for interview purposes. These visits were part of a broader theme of the Clinic—recognizing the harm caused by the current criminal system. We saw firsthand the side of the system that people like to ignore.”

In designing and directing the Clinic, Professor LaFalce draws on his 14-year career at the Legal Aid Society—a path that took him from Riker’s Island, where he represented clients charged with violating the conditions of their parole, to city courtrooms, where he represented New Yorkers charged with crimes ranging from low level marijuana possession to murder. Professor LaFalce also worked on impact litigation and legislative reform, most recently as a policy attorney synergy is what led to wins in court and doing everything we could for our clients.”

Moore also appreciated Professor LaFalce’s expert insights and guidance as the student clinicians explored social and racial justice issues and grew their client advocacy skills. “Learning from an experienced practitioner like Professor LaFalce is a gift,” Moore says. “It’s one thing to take a lawyering class, which helps a ton, but seeing the legal system in its real-world context and practicing clientcentered lawyering are the most important things I’ll take away from the Defense and Advocacy Clinic.” in Legal Aid’s Criminal Defense Practice. He joined the St. John’s Law faculty as an adjunct professor teaching Criminal Procedure: Investigations before coming on full time to teach Criminal Law last year.

As they work on legal matters, the Clinic students attend a weekly seminar led by Professor LaFalce, where they explore New York City’s criminal legal reform movements and consider policy solutions to systemic issues they encounter in the field, among other topics. Throughout the semester, partnering in teams and collaborating as a group, the students forge common bonds. “The highlight of my time in the Clinic was working with seven other students who were willing to give everything they had and more for their clients,” says Rashad Moore ’23. “Being with other public defense-minded students pushed me and taught me things I didn’t know. Our

In the short time since its launch, Professor LaFalce can already see the Clinic’s impact. “St. John’s has long been recognized as preparing students for work as prosecutors,” he notes. “I’m eager to help develop our reputation as an institution that graduates movement lawyers committed to shrinking the size of our criminal legal system and reducing its grave harms.” Joining Professor LaFalce in that effort are St. John’s Law Professors Anna Arons, Anjali Pathmanathan, and Abel Rodriguez and administrators Martha Grieco and Ashleigh Kashimawo, who worked as public defenders in their earlier careers. It’s a vital mission that centers on students who want to make a difference.

Professor LaFalce can relate to that desire, which sparked in him as a law student interning at Legal Aid in his hometown of Buffalo, NY. “After that early experience as a student in the field, I knew that becoming a public defender was the best path for me to address searing racial disparities and other pervasive problems in our criminal legal system,” he says. “I’ve been able to do that work in practice and as an educator. It’s a tremendous privilege to teach at St. John’s Law, and to direct our new Defense and Advocacy Clinic. I’m thrilled to guide students as they begin their legal careers, and I’m incredibly excited to be in conversation with any and all of them who aspire to be public defenders.”