Atty. Green Wants You
To ‘Know Your Rights’

Public Defender Kelly Green wants local folks to know their rights. She is teaching two adult education courses-one especially related to teen rights-at Randolph Technical Career Center. (Herald / Bob Eddy)

By Sandy Vondrasek Cooch

A police officer asks if he can search your car. What do you say?

Your teenager is told by school administrators that he can’t wear a T-shirt that sports an unpopular political message. What do you do?

Your neighbor likes to drive around with a loaded gun. Is she allowed to do that?

The U.S. Constitution offers citizens a host of rights and protections, and the Vermont Constitution offers residents—including children—some additional ones, as well.

But, not too many folks—unless they’re lawyers, law enforcement officers, judges, civics teachers, or graduates of a recent civics class—have a very clear notion of what those protections are.

Defense attorney Kelly Green of Randolph is doing her mite to change the situation.

Green, a 2005 graduate of Vermont Law School and a public defender in a Chelsea law office, is offering a five-session "Know Your Rights" adult education class at Randolph Technical Career Center for the second year in a row. The sessions are Monday nights, 6-8 p.m., October 22-Nov. 19.

She first offered the course last year, and "it was such a blast," Green said, that she is doing it again.

Not only that, but Atty. Green is expanding her public education mission this year with a one-day workshop for teens and their parents, "Know Your Teenager’s Rights." That one will be 9 a.m.-noon on Saturday, Nov. 3.

After graduating from VLS, Green worked in the state public defender’s office, and now works in the law office of Daniel Sedon, who has the public defender contract for Orange County.

Green says that it was once she started do trial work that it became evident that "people don’t know their rights."

She decided, she said, "if I could do something meaningful with my career, it would be to educate the people of Orange County about these things."

So she designed a "Know Your Rights" course and approached Ruth Durkee, director of the adult education program at RTCC about adding the class to the list of classes and workshops.

Green crams a lot of material into "Know Your Rights," including background presentations, followed up with lively discussions. There’s not much required homework, but Green prepares "lots of reading to take home and sift through," for those interested in learning more.

Green says she opens the session with an overview of the court system, both federal and state, and the appeal process. Both the state and federal constitutions are also reviewed.

"It’s like a refresher course in civics," she said.

Green noted that newspapers are covering a lot of constitutional rights issues these days, including federal surveillance and the rights of "non-combatant" detainees at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba. But she finds most of the meat for her class in Orange County cases.

The class discusses the First Amendment case of the Williamstown teen who has appealed to federal court his school’s order to cover some words on a T-shirt critical of President Bush.

Green said the class also talks about "an Orange County case involving excessive (police) force," and another local case centering on the issue of "expressive conduct."

Green is open to class members’ questions and interests, as well. Last year, the course included discussions about current events, and American and constitutional history.

Teen Class, Too

Discussion of the Williamstown T-shirt issue in last year’s course, plus Green’s work as public defender, led her to add a "Know Your Teenager’s Right" workshop this year.

"I often get cases in criminal court where some kid’s rights were trampled, and parents were helpless," Green commented.

She noted that the Vermont Constitution offers children more protections than does the federal one. Vermont gives a right to education, for example, and gives children more rights under the Miranda law.

"I think it’s just a great opportunity for RTCC to help people learn more about our constitutional rights and protections," said Adult Ed. Director Ruth Durkee this week.

"The subject is fascinating, and in the wrong hands could be hard to navigate, but she (Green) takes that out of it."

There is a fee for the "Know Your Rights" course, which starts next Monday, and for the one-day "Teenager" workshop in November. For information or to register, contact Durkee at 728-9595, ext. 106, or at rdurkee@randolphtech.org.

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