Briana Roy, of Huntington Beach, CA, won the 2015 $300 Local Group Karen Cooper Scholarship.
As a survivor of sexual, mental and emotional abuse since the age of eight, I knew I only had one goal in life – to help people. Until recently, I had no idea in what capacity I would be able to truly accomplish this goal. Throughout the years, I have engaged in many volunteer opportunities, including teaching English as a second language to elementary students in China, assisting active duty military in applying for benefits, and participating in events to end human trafficking. My passion runs deep and wide, but there is always one unifying theme – to help anyone who needs it. I was not content in merely assisting various organizations – I wanted to make a difference utilizing God-given skills and passion that were innate. This is when I discovered my love for the law. Although I am really fascinated by the law, I have always been disheartened by the thoughts of indigent people serving time in prison for a crime they did not commit simply because they could not afford a proper defense. Conversely, I was repulsed by the thought of wealthy defendants who were acquitted for a crime they did commit! The decision to enter law school was not an easy one considering my circumstances.
I am a stay-at-home mother of two children, ages 7 and 2, a spouse and caretaker of a disabled veteran, and I had not been in school since I graduated college with my undergraduate degree over ten years ago. Despite the adversity and the obvious challenges that lay ahead, the yearning to help people overpowered my anxiety. I knew I was meant to attend law school and could not fathom giving up this opportunity. I recall telling my husband, “I must do this. There is a person sitting in jail right now, possibly on death row, who is innocent and needs just one person to believe in them, to advocate for them, and to save their life. I am going to be that person.”
Indigent individuals suffer in the legal system because of their limited resources. Take the story of Betty Anne Waters, for example. Ms. Waters was a waitress and a single mom when her brother Kenneth Waters was sentenced to jail for a crime he did not commit. She painstakingly pursued a college degree, then a law degree, searched for DNA evidence that was purportedly “missing” according to authorities, went door to door getting witnesses to admit they were coerced to testify against her brother, and eventually overturned his conviction after nearly 18 years. Ms. Waters does not currently practice as an attorney; she is a manager at the bar/restaurant she used to waitress for. Ms. Waters became an attorney to save a life – her brother’s life.
I will be honest here – when my husband’s traumatic brain injury from the war causes him to have severe migraines and he’s unable to care for himself let alone our children, when my father was hospitalized due to what the doctor’s believed was cancer, when there are days we are certain we cannot pay rent and we will surely be homeless – I feel hopeless. But I will never give up. Upon graduation, I intend to do pro bono work in criminal defense for as long as I can afford to.