Mother Seeks Courtroom Help

While a network of courtroom advocates for the victims of domestic violence has been strengthened in recent years by state and Federal funding, the victims of crimes that occur outside the family are generally left on their own in East Hampton Town Justice Court. The few who can afford it sometimes hire lawyers to help them through the system. Those of lesser means more often than not are baffled by both the prosecution and the defense.

After her 12-year-old daughter reported being fondled by a family friend, who was later arrested, Carol Lock, an East Hampton woman, said she learned the hard way that sometimes victims (or, in this case, the victim's mother) must become their own advocates in court.

Vacant Post

"I just want to know what's going on. I just want to be sure they do what they're supposed to do. I couldn't find anyone to answer my questions," she said.

The Suffolk District Attorney's office had one advocate covering all the courts on the East End, including the county courts in Riverhead, until recently. She resigned a few months ago and has not yet been replaced.

The Retreat, an East Hampton-based agency, provides advocates for victims of domestic violence who seek its help.

Search For Information

"There has not been a general presence in the courtroom for a very, very long time," said East Hampton Town Administrative Justice Catherine Cahill, noting that she had "only seen two who were in court with people already plugged into the Retreat."

Justice Cahill and Justice Roger Walker, who is handling the case involving Ms. Lock's daughter, agreed it was the District Attorney's job to answer victims' questions and represent their interests in court. Justice Cahill said she has another pending case where the mother of a child victim had been in search of information.

Both Justices said they talk with the victim of a violent or sexual crime before arraigning a defendant to find out whether an order of protection is needed and to let the victim know when and if the defendant would be free on bail. Beyond that, "the judge has to remain impartial," Justice Walker said.

Ms. Lock told The Star she had many questions about her daughter's case.

To begin with, she said, the prosecutor assigned to it gave her the name of an advocate in the D.A.'s office, apparently unaware that she had left her job. Ms. Lock then called the prosecutor several times but reported that she did not get a return call until after The Star called to inquire about the case.

Questioned Charge

Ms. Lock said she wanted to know why Thomas Gilliam Sr., 36, had been charged with a misdemeanor rather than a felony. When The Star posed her question to Town Police Capt. Todd Sarris, he explained that felony charges of sexual abuse are reserved for cases when the victim is 11 or younger or when "forcible compulsion" is used.

Ms. Lock said Mr. Gilliam had been accused of fondling her daughter and another 12-year-old girl (both youngsters' names are being withheld to protect their privacy) in the same incident. She wanted to know why he was freed on $1,000 bail.

Explains Bail

Justice Walker told The Star that $1,000 bail was considered high for a misdemeanor charge. In comparison, he said, defendants charged with driving while intoxicated, also a misdemeanor, typically are released on $200 bail or less.

Mr. Gilliam has a court date next Thursday and Ms. Lock said she also wanted to know in advance what the procedure would be. She said both girls' parents had spent hours in court after the suspect's arrest waiting for him to be arraigned, only to learn that he already had been freed on bail. They were not present at the bail hearing.

In addition to expressing her opinion that the bail was too low, Ms. Lock said she wanted to be assured that, if Mr. Gilliam were found guilty, he would be appropriately punished. In her opinion, such punishment should be severe.

Matter Of Money

"But I feel like there's no one watching out for my daughter but me," said Ms. Lock, adding that she could not afford her own lawyer. She called some acquaintances for advice, including a criminal justice professor who took Ms. Lock's predicament to The Star. She added that she hoped to fill the courtroom with friends and family if the case goes to trial.

Justice Walker, noting that bail is intended only to guarantee that a suspect returns to court, explained that the Dec. 18 proceeding was for the prosecutor to report on any efforts to negotiate a plea bargain with Mr. Gilliam's lawyer. Justice Walker said he had "no indication" yet whether the case would go to trial or be resolved in a plea bargain.

Police confirmed that Mr. Gilliam has been arrested more than a dozen times in East Hampton, on a variety of charges, and the D.A. reported that he had pleaded guilty to four offenses over the years and once served 90 days in jail. He is now serving three years on probation for a petty larceny charge.

Defense Attorney

"Girls today are taught to speak up but what's the point if he's not going to be punished?" asked Ms. Lock.

Mr. Gilliam, a truck driver for Stanley and Sons, a local carting firm, has hired a well-known criminal defense lawyer, Robert Gottlieb of Huntington. Mr. Gottlieb is defending Mr. Gilliam's employer, Timothy Volk, in a separate matter, and it was Mr. Volk who posted the bail.

With Mr. Gottlieb working for the defense and the prosecution appearing to hinge entirely on the girls' testimony, Ms. Lock said she was worried that her daughter might have to take the stand. Captain Sarris said he thought both victims, though young, would be "credible witnesses."

Southampton Program

Captain Sarris agreed that some victims need the steady source of information and reassurance that an advocate could provide. He said his office tried to fill the gaps, although few victims take their questions to the police. Officers routinely hand out a list of agencies that offer counseling and other assistance such as the Family Service League and the rape hot line at the State University at Stony Brook.

In Southampton Town, where the focus of advocacy also has been on victims of domestic violence, Justice Deborah Kooperstein recently was awarded a nearly $150,000 grant to hire two full-time advocates to work in Justice Court and the emergency room of Southampton Hospital. Ms. Kooperstein said the plan was to have a victim's advocate in court at all times.

Teri Wilson, who runs the Retreat's advocacy program, said on Monday the agency has its own advocate in Southampton Town, another in Riverhead, and a third on the North Fork. That program has a budget of about $100,000, funded partly by a state grant, she reported.

Possible Aid

In East Hampton, a new advocate started work with the Retreat last week. Maryann Sarris (who is Captain Sarris's sister-in-law) will represent clients living at the agency's shelter or who have cases already on the docket. "She's very busy," said Ms. Wilson.

Drew Biondo, the spokesman for the D.A., James M. Catterson Jr., said on Monday that his office was in search of a replacement for the East End advocate. He also said that the case involving Ms. Lock's daughter had been assigned to a new prosecutor since the person first assigned had been promoted.

Ms. Lock reported Tuesday that she had had a call from the original prosecutor, who assured her the case was being taken seriously, and that she had made an appointment to meet the Retreat's new advocate to discuss whether her daughter's case could be included in that program.