Laura Pyle

Hosted by Blue Ridge Legal Services, Inc.
Sponsored by U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Office for Victims of Crime
Service location Harrisonburg, Virginia
Law school Loyola University Chicago School of Law
Issue area Elder Abuse
Fellowship class year 2020
Program Elder Justice Program

The Project

Laura provided outreach and legal services to low-income seniors in Blue Ridge Legal Services’ (BRLS) service area, with special focus on seniors in Shenandoah, Warren, and Allegany Counties, which are rural areas that are in the most distant locations from BRLS offices.

Isolation and misinformation endanger seniors in rural areas, especially during a pandemic. Additionally, nursing homes and assisted-living facilities may provide residents care according to a formulaic plan that prioritizes institutional efficiency over residents’ rights and autonomy. Often, seniors are simply not heard as individual persons.

Laura has always gravitated toward vulnerable clients in her law practice–children, disabled persons, mentally ill patients, and incapacitated persons. She believes that every person both wants and deserves to be heard and that due process of law for every person is a difficult and worthy ideal.

Fellowship Highlights

In addition to providing direct legal services to victims of elder abuse, Laura worked with multiple interdisciplinary organizations to increase awareness and provide education to law enforcement, social services, financial institutions, and the general public.