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Journal 2018 April WHATCOM COUNTY BAR JOURNAL 2018 www.whatcombar.org APRIL 2018 WCBA Officers Journal Editor President: Lisa Saar Mr. Rajeev D. Majumdar (360) 733-3374 (360) 332-7000 Vice Pres.: Nick Fay [email protected] Secretary: Matt Conner Treasurer: Phil Buri Top Stories! Lt. Gov. Cyrus Habib & Frmr. U.S. Atty John McKay to Visit Us 5 Six degrees of Separation –Jackson, Wyoming and the Hearsay Rule 6-10 Your Regular Favorites! The Presidents Column— “March Madness” 2-3 Classifieds— Jobs, office space & services! 4 Pro Bono Connection— Maybe next time n/a Rajeev’s Musings— “I got as far away from you as possible.” 11 “Utopia/Dystopia” 12-16 Fantastic Ads & Deals!— Our Proud Sponsors 17-23 Bar Meeting Minutes— 24 Special Announcements! 2nd Annual LAW Advocates Breakfast (May 3rd ) 8 Superlative B AR L UNCH On April 4th! ( 2018) At High Noon! Disclaimer: At Northwood Hall, 3240 Northwest Avenue, B’ham. The information & various arti- cles contained within this publi- Guest Speakers: Ceci Lopez is the Director of the Law, Diver- cation have not been checked for sity, and Justice program at Fairhaven College and recently-named accuracy. All opinions expressed WLI fellow for 2018. Ceci will be highlighting the recent work of are those of the authors and do Fairhaven students in the community, as well as establish a connec- not reflect the opinions of the Bar Association, the Journal, or the tion between the Law, Diversity, and Justice program and the WCBA. agents thereof. PAGE 2 WHATCOM COUNTY BAR APRIL 2018 The President’s Column By Lisa Saar, WCBA President 2018 March Madness March madness has come and gone for most of us, but for me the past two years, albeit largely productive and very satisfying, has also been madness. I have had the emotional experience of being involved in too many suicides. I lost a good friend, three of my clients and one client’s family member. One suicide is too many! Madness, right! Whose life is touched by that many suicides in the space of a couple of years? During my nursing career, I experienced suicide from afar and was even been able to prevent several. I was able to compartmentalize the emotions, chalking things up to the job. When I came back from Iraq, it deeply saddened me to learn that several of the people I had served with had committed suicide. I thought when I became a lawyer, I would not really have to deal with the emotional side of death, such as a suicide, up-close and personal like I did as a nurse. Obviously unrealistic, mainly because of the types of clients I’m assisting with legal ser- vices. While not all of my clients fall into the following categories, I do assist a large number of folks with mental health disorders: depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disor- ders and substance abuse; all of which are some of the risk factors for suicide. The statistics regarding suicide are sobering. Every year approximately 44,000 Americans die by suicide; it is the tenth leading cause of death nationwide according to the Centers for Dis- ease Control. According to the World Health Organization, over 800,000 people worldwide com- mit suicide. In Washington state, according to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, 1,131 residents died in 2016, by suicide making it the eighth leading cause of death overall in Washington state at a cost of $1,114,435,000 of combined lifetime medical and work lost. Suicide is a serious public health problem that can have lasting harmful effects on individ- ual families and communities. On average, one person dies by suicide every 8 hours in the state, is the 2nd leading cause of death for ages 10-34; 3rd for ages 35-44; 4th for ages 45-54. About six times as many people die by suicide in Washington annually as by homicide.1 This is aston- ishing to me, because it is preventable. We prevent heart disease by eating right, exercise to lower blood pressure, why can’t we make sure we are taking care of our mental health too. As with prevention of anything, everyone must take action to help. One of the things we can do to help prevent suicide is look for the following warning signs in ourselves and others and then don’t ignore them, take action Warning Signs of Suicide: • Threatening to hurt or kill oneself or talking about wanting to hurt or kill oneself • Looking for ways to kill oneself by seeking access to firearms, available pills, or other means • Feeling hopeless APRIL 2018 WHATCOM COUNTY BAR PAGE 3 (Continued from page 2) • Feeling rage or uncontrolled anger or seeking revenge • Acting reckless or engaging in risky activities - seemingly without thinking • Feeling trapped - like there's no way out • Increasing alcohol or drug use • Withdrawing from friends, family, and society • Feeling anxious, agitated, or unable to sleep or sleeping all the time • Experiencing dramatic mood changes • Seeing no reason for living or having no sense of purpose in life The National Suicide Prevention Helpline recommends the following when someone is threatening suicide: • Be direct. Talk openly and matter-of-factly about suicide. • Be willing to listen. Allow expressions of feelings. Accept the feelings. • Be non-judgmental. Don't debate whether suicide is right or wrong, or whether feelings are good or bad. Don't lecture on the value of life. • Get involved. Become available. Show interest and support. • Don't dare him or her to do it. • Don't act shocked. This will put distance between you. • Don't be sworn to secrecy. Seek support. • Offer hope that alternatives are available but do not offer glib reassurance. • Take action. Remove means, such as guns or stockpiled pills. • Get help from persons or agencies specializing in crisis intervention and suicide prevention. Lawyers are not immune to suicide. As research suggests, lawyers experience depression and substance abuse at higher rates than the general population, lawyers may be at a greater risk for suicide. If you suspect someone is struggling with depression or some other mental health disorder and might be considering taking their life, don’t ignore it. Act! Get help! I’ve called the police, Department of Social and Health Services, 911 and even the person’s family members for assis- tance. I have seen more death in my life than I think one person should experience, I will never get used to it. Let’s look out for each other, our families and clients. Every life is precious! Endnotes 1 - American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (2018). https://afsp.org/ . PAGE 4 WHATCOM COUNTY BAR APRIL 2018 Classified Ads Free to all WCBA members & firms e-mail ad copy as MS Word .doc file to: [email protected] by the 15th of the preceding month Questions? Call 360 527-9400 Office Space Available – Bellingham Towers - 119 N. Commercial Street – downtown! Just down the street from City Hall, the Court House and the Federal Building. If interested please call 360-647- 1916 x 112 or email: [email protected]. Conference room available for Rent to Ten- ants and Non-Tenants. Attorney Available to Assist with Overflow Work. Former Sole Practitioner licensed in both Georgia and Washington, will assist with your Overflow needs; now you can have the part-time assis- tance you need, when you need it. Professional and dependable. Can work on-site or off-site at my own well-equipped home office. Rates variable by complexity of work; minimum 3 hours. Contact me directly as follows: Carol Sheppard (770) 366-8186 or [email protected]. Assistance in Serious Cases: Just moved to Bellingham. Recently licensed in Washington, with 42 years of trial experience in Texas, including lead counsel in 2 Capital Murders in the past two years, and 12 years as a trial judge. Available to assist in preparation and trial of serious cases - criminal and civil. Contact: Norman E. Lanford, Sr., 512-751-1272, or [email protected]. Beautifully Updated, Courthouse-Located Office Space Available. 800 sf or more. Take it all or share with me. Furnishings/new light fixtures/decorations, and rent, negotiable. Also, CONFER- ENCE ROOM AVAILABLE for rent. Sharon Westergreen . 360-966-3800 Carmichael Clark, P.S. is seeking a full-time paralegal to work in the areas of real estate, land use, municipal, environmental and water law. We are looking for a candidate that can work in a fast -paced practice, be personable and possesses good organizational and communication skills. Candi- date should be detailed oriented and be able to handle multiple priorities. Bachelor’s Degree and/or three or more years of experience supporting a real estate or land use practice. Send cover letters and resume to [email protected] Sublet Office Space on the 14th Floor of the Bellingham Towers. Two offices with mountain views available for sublet on the 14th floor of the Bellingham Towers. A small conference room right outside our office is also available if needed. If you are interested in viewing the space, please call 360-650-9200 to schedule an appointment. APRIL 2018 WHATCOM COUNTY BAR PAGE 5 PAGE 6 WHATCOM COUNTY BAR APRIL 2018 Six degrees of Separation –Jackson, Wyoming and the Hearsay Rule By Michael Bersch Six degrees of separation is the theory that everyone is connected to everyone else by six or fewer steps. Perhaps this is why I have trouble staying focused doing research. When delving into a subject, I often follow one of the innumerable threads of connectivity to where I forget why I am, where I end up being.
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