2011

Featured Entries

A blueprint for future waste disposal

From SCSJ attorney Chris Brook contributed an op-ed to the Greensboro News-Record about the White Street Landfill. Brook highlights the importance of long-term planning and…

Wills' clinic in Spout Springs, NC

NOTE: we are having another wills' clinic October 22-23 in Tarboro, NC. Contact SCSJ attorney Chris Brook at (919) 323-3380 for more details. Following other wills' clinics we have held across the state, SCSJ conducted its first wills’ clinic in Spout Springs, North Carolina, as part of its efforts to prevent a leading cause of land loss in the South: heirs’ property passing without a will. During the September 23-25 clinic, 18 Harnett County residents had 54 end of life documents made free of charge. Documents drafted included wills, living wills, health care powers of attorney, and durable powers of attorney. Many thanks to everyone who made the service possible: SCSJ coordinating attorney Chris Brook, the Spout Springs Presbyterian Church, which hosted the clinic, and the ten law student volunteers from Carolina and Campbell Law. Carolina Law second-year student and wills’ clinic volunteer Jean Abreu highlighted the rewards in “assisting clients in securing their property for future generations.”

Carrboro rethinks loitering ordinance

From Durham Herald-Sun covers the debate over the anti-loitering ordinance in Carrboro, NC. SCSJ is working with community members to urge the town to reconsider…

The right to stand still

From The Durham Herald-Sun wrote an editorial criticizing the anti-loitering ordinance in Carrboro. SCSJ attorney and Carrboro resident Chris Brook has been hard at work…

'Never give up the land'

From The Charlotte Observer covers the saga of the Reels family in Carteret County. SCSJ Executive Director Anita Earls has represented the Reels during their…

National Call-in day for Iglesia Buen Pastor!

Today we are asking people to call Immigration and Customs Enforcement to ask that they drop the charges against 22 members of the Buen Pastor congregation. We are doing this in partnership with the National Network for Immigrant and Refugee Rights. If you haven't signed the petition, do so here.

Dial (800) 394-5855 and tell them:

Hello, I am calling from ______________________ to urge John Morton to drop the charges against all the families involved in the Buen Pastor congregation case in which 22 men, women, and children are facing deportation. Over 800 individuals have signed a petition asking for him to drop the deportation proceedings for this case but have not received a response.

- John Morton has the power to take action today to drop charges.


- Members of Buen Pastor are exactly the kind of individuals who should benefit from President Obama’s August 18th announcement that DHS should use discretion to close cases of individuals who are positive influences on our communities, and who furthermore, are victims of civil rights abuses.


- The church members have filed a complaint and now have an open investigation with the DHS office of Civil Rights and Civil Liberties for rights violations including racial profiling, denied access to interpreters, denied access to legal counsel, and threats to take away their children.

Victory for Landfill Opponents in Greensboro

By Chris Brook The vendor selected to run the White Street Landfill by a four-person majority of the Greensboro City Council has announced it is terminating contract negotiations. Noting the divisive nature of the push to re-open the White Street Landfill, Gate City Waste Services informed the City Council on Tuesday that continued negotiations were no longer a “palatable option.” This letter comes a week after Gate City and the four-person majority unsuccessfully sought to have Councilwoman Vaughan conflicted out of voting on a contract with Gate City. Councilwoman Vaughan was widely expected to vote against Gate City’s proposal, thus deadlocking the City Council at four votes to re-open the landfill, four votes to close the landfill. The City Council accepted Gate City’s request to terminate contract negotiations Tuesday evening, handing landfill opponents a decisive victory in their effort to keep the landfill closed. Working with Greensboro community groups including the Citizens for Economic and Environmental Justice as well as the League of Women Voters Piedmont Triad, SCSJ blocked previous City Council plans to expand the landfill via legal action this summer. With Gate City’s abandonment of contract negotiations, the victory for landfill opponents is complete and decisive.