Ozark Profile : Hughes enjoys small-town aspects of Fayetteville life

By BY ROBIN MERO Northwest Arkansas Times

Posted: July 27, 2009 at 6:55 a.m.

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FAYETTEVILLE — Let's handle the obvious question first.

Her name.

It's D'lorah; her dad's name, Harold, spelled backward.

But call her Professor Hughes. You'll probablybe looking up to her in stature and respect. This 6-foottall woman, who turns 34 on Wednesday, has traveled to more than a dozen countries, is licensed to practice law in California, Ohio and Arkansas - and now lives in Fayetteville, training law students to practice in criminal courtrooms.

As director of criminal clinics for the University of Arkansas School of Law, Hughes takes hundreds of cases a year from Washington County prosecutors and public defenders, then supervises third-year law students in handling those cases.

It's the students' first opportunity to translate studies into actual experiences of, for instance, standing before a judge; explaining the legal system to a youth; and proving elements of a crime.

Hughes loves the job because it allows her to be bothcourtroom lawyer and academic.

Her students said they appreciate that she's not too much older; it wasn't many years ago that she actually worked as a lawyer, and therefore she understands what they're facing.

"As an attorney, you have someone else's life and future in your hands. We got stressed and nervous and, any time she could, she'd make us smile or laugh. I really appreciated how she'd do that," said former student Lejoi Walker of Georgia.

Independent girl

Born in Lexington, Ky., Hughes also lived in Texas, North Carolina and California during childhood years. In 1998, she earned a bachelor of arts degree in liberal studies from California State University at Long Beach.

Her law degree came in 2001 from Duke University School of Law.

She was an independent girl, not afraid of "doing things on her own," her father, Harold Hughes, said.

"She always loved to study and was one of the people who was good at it. She was offered several scholarships but held out until Duke called her. The day she graduated, my wife told me, 'You know, I bet one of these days she ends up teaching,' because she liked the academic environment so much," he said.

Hughes first concentrated on practicing law - clerking for a federal judge in Corpus Christi, Texas, and working three years as an Orange County Deputy Public Defender.

Then, a job came along that appealed to her humanitarian side.

She moved to San Francisco to represents clients with HIV/AIDS at the Law Foundation of Silicon Valley.

"In college and law school, I volunteered for an AIDS legal assistance clinic. I always said, if I could figure out a way to pay the rent and do that work, I would," Hughes said.

She handled employment discrimination, Social Security and consumer law cases. At heart, she is a defender, not a prosecutor, she said. She found San Francisco a fascinating, progressive city. "I don't know how she lived on what they paid her," her father said. "I kept asking her, 'Where's that $350,000 salary everybody kept offering you?'"

In 2006, Hughes' career took a turn when she accepted a position with Case Western Reserve School of Law in Ohio, teaching in the health law clinic.

In 2007, she spent a semester teaching law to Chinese and American students in Nanjing, China, through the Whittier Law School. That fall, she attended a faculty recruitment conference where, in a whirlwind of interviews, she met Dean Cynthia Nance of the UA School of Law.

The UA law school was gradually expanding its clinics. She was hired and moved to Arkansas during the summer of 2008.

Traditionally, law firms provided more training for their first year hires.

"Firms look for associates to hit the ground running and be prepared to begin work with less training provided by the firm," she said.

Teaching through clinics is a more intimate setting, as the student to faculty ratio is lower. A standard criminal law class may have 50, 60 or more students, whereas there are 12 in a clinic class, Hughes said.

"Not all law schools have clinical programs. We have a great variety of substantive areas represented includingbankruptcy,immigration, transactional, civil and wrongful conviction clinics. For our criminal clinics it is beneficial that we offer both a defense and a prosecution experience," Hughes said.

"It's putting theory into practice. It's good to do this during law school because it's a safe environment to test yourself. I look at the clinic as a capstone experience. And, sometimes, it helps someone decide whether to be a prosecutor or defense attorney - helps decide a path," she said.

In the spring, Hughes teaches the criminal prosecution clinic. Fayetteville City Prosecutor Casey Jones provides cases. Students appear before Fayetteville District Judge Rudy Moore Jr., handling all types of cases but domestic violence. They work with police officers, analyze facts, make offers to defendants and negotiate with defense attorneys.

In the fall, her students handle juvenile cases for the Washington County Public Defender's Office - appearing before Circuit Judge Stacy Zimmerman.

Clinics are made possible by support and cooperative effort from judges, prosecutors, public defenders and court staff, Hughes said.

Hughes said she enjoys watching timid, reserved and uncertain students gain confidence over the semester, "finding out who they are as a lawyer.

"It's great having this experience in your third year of law school, versus the first year on your own," she said. "You've got 11 other students going through the same thing;

they're their own little newbie law firm."

Students deal with varied issues such as mental health, substance abuse, power and race.

"I could do the same cases over and over, it's how the individual student approaches that case that is fun. I learn something new all the time," she said.

Friendly wit

Friends said Hughes is tremendously witty and keeps them in stitches.

"She's smart, brilliantly funny, selfassured and confident," Stephanie Harper Easterling, a Fort Smith attorney, said.

"Yet, she's unpretentious and has a certain kindness that makes everyone want to be around her. Even though she's younger than me, she is someone I try to emulate."

Hughes is starting an adult kickball league. She adopted a rescue dog. She loves to explore new, independent restaurants.

"I'm used to being in new places, and I find people in Fayetteville welcoming and friendly," she said.

She's a board member of Legal Aid of Arkansas, serves on the Access to Justice Commission and is an operations committee member for the Northwest Arkansas Center for Equality.

She's starting a local adult kickball league and said one of her favorite Fayetteville fea tures is the 112 Drive-In theater.

"It's cool and different, a bit of Americana. This town is full of quirky, different things. I love the Farmer's Market," she said

Hughes bought her first house here, a 1950s brick home near campus that was built by former UA basketball coach Glen Rose. The home is light filled, she said, with amazing windows and gorgeous hard wood floors.

Her one suggestion for Fayetteville is an Indian food restaurant. Her favorite spot to meet friends is the Wine Cellar near Dickson Street.

"I was there on their opening night, which is also the night I found out I passed the bar exam. It's my spot, where I feel I made my place in Fayetteville," she said.

News, Pages 1, 5 on 07/27/2009

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