Ellen M. Barry (born September 20, 1953) is an American attorney and

public interest The public interest is "the welfare or well-being of the general public" and society. Overview Economist Lok Sang Ho in his ''Public Policy and the Public Interest'' argues that the public interest must be assessed impartially and, therefor ...

lawyer who focuses on

prisoners' rights The rights of civilian and military prisoners are governed by both national and international law. International conventions include the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights; the United Nations' Minimum Rules for the Treatment ...

. She was a 1998

MacArthur Fellow The MacArthur Fellows Program, also known as the MacArthur Fellowship and commonly but unofficially known as the "Genius Grant", is a prize awarded annually by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation typically to between 20 and 30 indi ...

Life and education

She grew up in Somerville, Massachusetts, as the second of ten children. She received a bachelor of arts degree from Swarthmore College in 1975 and a J.D. from

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, th ...

Law School in 1978. She was admitted to the State Bar of California in November 1978.

Career

In 1978 Barry founded Legal Services for Prisoners with Children (LSPC), a

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

-based nonprofit organization that seeks to address "young people at risk of incarceration, grandparent caregivers, alternatives to incarceration for mothers and children, and improving medical care for women in prisons and jails". where she worked as director and managing attorney until 2001, when she left to work in private practice. She helped organize the National Network for Women in Prison, and Critical Resistance. She has represented "incarcerated women, pregnant women prisoners, prisoners, and parolees" in lawsuits.

References

External links

*http://www.practicallawyer.com/radio/SS072311.mp3 *https://web.archive.org/web/20110827054039/http://www.talkradioone.com/index.php/2011/07/23/next-steven-spierer-live-saturday-10am-pdt1pm-edt-12/ Steve interviews Criminal Defense attorney Ellen Barry], 7/23/11 1953 births MacArthur Fellows Swarthmore College alumni New York University School of Law alumni Living people People from Somerville, Massachusetts 21st-century American women lawyers 21st-century American lawyers {{US-law-bio-stub