The Domestic Violence Legal Assistance Program fills the gap of legal resources for domestic violence survivors who can't afford an attorney. Domestic violence survivors in Jackson, Vicksburg, Hattiesburg, Oxford and Pascagoula can all get help. Julia Crockett, deputy director of Central Southwest Mississippi Legal Services Corp., said the program expects to help nearly 1,000 domestic violence victims. Crockett said legal help gives domestic abuse survivors a way to rebuild their lives. "They have been made to feel by the abuser that no one is going to help them do anything, so when they come to us they are desperate," she said. "Those who need legal help and don't get it feel totally lost. Because then they feel like they are forced to stay in that situation." Crockett said the program, funded by a $300,000 grant from the U.S. Justice Department, has no economic restrictions on who can get help. Legal services typically helps the poor. Gladys Bunzy, who said she was in an abusive relationship with a boyfriend for eight years, said such a program is long overdue and could be a lifeline for those escaping violent relationships. "When I finally made up my mind to leave, I had a restraining order put against him and that was $50 but that was $50 well spent to me," said Bunzy, 40. "For people who can't afford it, this will be a godsend ... If a woman knows she is going to get some help that will be a burden off her mind, if the law will help her keep that person away from her." Gwen Bouie-Haynes, project director of the Domestic Violence Services Center for Catholic Charities Inc., said often domestic violence survivors do not have the money to seek legal representation. "Legal assistance is a major issue for women fleeing a domestic violence situation," she said. "Often times women are in need of immediate legal assistance services for the protection of the mother and the child. To get a protective order you need to be represented by an attorney." Crockett said the pilot program was launched in 1998 at the Haven House Family Shelter Inc., a domestic violence shelter for women and children in Vicksburg. The program has helped victims in 90 court cases, and 150 legal counseling sessions have been held there.

Question: "Who said legal assistance is a major issue for women feeling domestic violence?"

Response: "Gwen Bouie-Haynes"

A: yes

Dubai's Crown Prince Sheikh Mohamed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum inaugurated a free zone for e-commerce today, called Dubai Internet City. The preliminary stages of the project, the only one of its kind according to its designers, are estimated at $200 million. Sheikh Mohamed, who is also the Defense Minister of the United Arab Emirates, announced at the inauguration ceremony that "we want to make Dubai a new trading center." The minister, who has his own website, also said: "I want Dubai to be the best place in the world for state-of-the-art technology companies." He said companies engaged in e-commerce would be able to set up offices, employ staff and own equipment in the open zone, including fully-owned foreign companies. The e-commerce free zone is situated in north Dubai, near the industrial free zone in Jebel Ali, the top regional and tenth international leading area in container transit. The inauguration of Dubai Internet City coincides with the opening of an annual IT show in Dubai, the Gulf Information Technology Exhibition (Gitex), the biggest in the Middle East.

Question: "Who is Sheikh Mohamed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum"

Response: "Defense Minister of UAE"

A: yes

The Washington Supreme Court is asking the Legislature to approve a $90 surcharge on a court filing fee to help provide legal help for the poor in civil cases, Chief Justice Gerry Alexander said Wednesday. "Some might say, why should we support this when we face tough financial times?" Alexander asked in his State of the Judiciary address to a joint session of the Legislature. "It seems to me in America, where we rejoice in the fact that we are a nation devoted to the rule of law, we should not ration access to justice." The recommendation comes from the court's Task Force on Civil Equal Justice Funding, created in 2001 to look for ways to cope with the sparse amount of money available for such cases. As the task force was studying the issue, $900,000 was cut from state support for civil equal justice services. That prompted the state's two main legal services providers - Columbia Legal Services and Northwest Justice Project - to cut their staffs, Alexander said. The change would increase the cost of filing a lawsuit in Superior Court to $200. The total fee would be split, with 54 percent going to counties and 46 percent going to the state for a newly created equal justice account. Alexander also requested money for five additional Superior Court judgeships and one additional District Court judgeships, arguing that increased caseloads require more judges. Two of the Superior Court judges and the District Court judge would be in Clark County, with one Superior Court judge added in the joint district that serves Benton and Franklin counties and one each in Kittitas and Kitsap counties.

Question: "What change would increase the cost of filing a lawsuit in Superior Court?"

Response: "For Columbia Legal Services and Northwest Justice Project cutting their staff"

A:
yes