Sue Burrell - 2010 PJDC Juvenile Defender of the Year

YLC Staff Attorney Sue Burrell received the 2010 “Juvenile Defender of the Year” award at the seventh annual Pacific Juvenile Defender Center Roundtable held on November 6, 2010 at Sacramento State University. When presenting the award to Sue, PJDC Co-Director Patricia Lee recognized Sue’s incredible career of advocacy at both YLC and the Los Angeles County Public Defender’s Office for vulnerable youth in California and across the country. Lee noted that Sue’s work through the MacArthur Foundation’s Juvenile Indigent Defense Action Network (JIDAN) over the past two years had transformed PJDC into a vibrant community of more than 400 defenders across the state who are able to learn from one another to better advocate for their clients.

Sue, along with YLC Paralegal Mamie Yee and YLC Staff Attorney Corene Kendrick, helped organize the day-long event, which had in attendance more than 80 attorneys from across the state, but especially from Northern California and the Sacramento Valley. Attendees were able to attend presentations on topics including juvenile justice legislation and litigation, new appellate caselaw, immigration issues, disposition and diversion options for children, restitution, confessions, public benefits for children in juvenile justice, and the first-ever panel discussion of the challenges facing defenders in small counties and small offices.