NORTH COAST, Calif. – On March 22 and 23, OneJustice’s Justice Bus Project rolled into Ukiah and Kelseyville to staff two free clean slate and workers’ rights legal clinics.

The Justice Bus Project aims to increase free legal services to low-income communities in rural and isolated areas of California.

Behind the project is a deep belief that for every community in need of free legal assistance, there are volunteer lawyers, law students and legal services attorneys who are very able and willing to help.

Such was the case on March 22 and 23, when the Justice Bus Project partnered with Legal Services of Northern California (LSNC), The Legal Aid Society-Employment Law Center’s Mobile Workers’ Rights Clinic (LAS-ELC) and Pacific McGeorge School of Law (McGeorge) to organize two free legal clinics for residents of Lake and Mendocino counties.

Thirteen volunteer law students from McGeorge School of Law traveled from Sacramento to Ukiah and Kelseyville to meet with individuals seeking assistance with clearing their criminal record and dealing with issues related to employment. Each clinic was busy throughout the day and the volunteers received positive and encouraging feedback from individuals who visited the clinic.

“I am ever so thankful there is an opportunity to receive support and direction to take care of this matter so that I may continue to be a productive member of society,” commented one person.

Another commented on the quality of legal assistance she received at the clinic: “I received excellent, very knowledgeable assistance from the two young ladies in law school, which helped me immensely in my desire to have some pesky, very old misdemeanor criminal matters from long ago be expunged.”

Mary Heare Amodio, president of the Lake County Bar Association and lay leader of the Kelseyville United Methodist Church, helped organize the event in Lake County.

“Hosting a program like the Justice Bus Project is a ‘win-win’ situation for everyone involved,” she said. “Some community members were able to clean up their records; others now understand why they can’t clear their record; some obtained help with employment issues; law students got some practical experience dealing with ‘clients’; the church was able to provide space for a program that advances social justice in the community; and members of the local bar were able to meet and assist the legal aid attorneys in providing a service to the community.”

During the two days, 47 people received legal assistance and are closer to removing barriers to employment.

All of the partners who participate in the event are grateful for the warm welcome they received by Ukiah and Kelseyville communities and hope to return to hold more free clinics in the future.