Justice for three-year old Oliver couldn’t come fast enough for his grandparents, Mr. and Ms. Kinney.  Oliver and his older brother, D.J., had been abused by their father, a meth addict and alcoholic who is the Kinney’s only son.  The boys had bottles thrown at them and suffered cigarette burns, bruises, and other injuries.  Oliver was born with fetal alcohol syndrome.  D.J. has mental problems from the abuse and acts out in school.  The Kinneys adopted D.J. when he was four weeks old.  Oliver has been living with his grandparents since he was two months old.

Recently, the father assaulted D.J. during a visit at his parent’s home.  The Kinneys filed criminal charges against him, and he was later convicted of the charges.  Despite all that, he wanted Oliver to live with him, but the Kinneys would not allow it.  They wanted to protect Oliver from the abuse.  Their caseworker referred them to the Georgia Legal Services Program (GLSP).  A GLSP lawyer assisted the Kinneys to obtain a protective order, custody, and child support of $294 monthly for Oliver.

“GLSP was a fighter for our youngest grandchild, Oliver, who was abused by his meth addicted father.  We couldn’t afford a lawyer to help us obtain custody of Oliver.  Our caseworker referred us to GLSP.  Our GLSP lawyer knew the laws and assisted us every step of the way to obtain a protective order, custody, and child support for Oliver!  It takes a village to raise a child, and it also takes a village to protect a child.  Our GLSP lawyer told us she would always be there for us.  She’s a guardian angel!” —  Perry and Sandra Kinney 

Pictured are Oliver and his older brother D.J.  This actual client story and photo are used with permission.

We are a non-profit law firm serving rural and small town Georgia.

We offer free legal services in civil cases to people who cannot afford to hire a lawyer. We have 11 offices around the state to serve people where they live.
Our clients have “high stakes” problems, such as domestic violence, eviction or foreclosure, denial of hard-earned benefits such as unemployment, inability to get critically needed health care or food aid, and many more.
Our work is to assure that low income people have access to justice and opportunities out of poverty.
When problems occur, we help our clients secure the support they need to get back on their feet — with dignity.
When rights are denied, we help our clients seek redress and have those rights assured. Click below to see a video on GLSP made on the occasion of the Georgia Association of Black Women Attorneys Founders award ceremony.