California Attorney General's wife takes over as head of "Family Justice Center"

Nadia Lockyer, the wife of outgoing California Attorney General Bill Lockyer, has just taken over as Executive Director of the Alameda County Family Justice Center in Oakland California. Please take a look at this brochure (.pdf file).

For those of you who do not know, the "Family Justice" centers are one stop shopping for people who allege domestic violence. But though by law they have to be gender neutral, they are being funded by grants from the US Department of Justice "Office on Violence Against Women" -- the OVW.

At the centers, women who claim to have been abused get free legal help, not just counseling with prosecutors, but child custody, divorce, and even immigration lawyers. Under a special loophole in the immigration laws, if a woman comes here on a marriage visa, and breaks up with her husband quickly, but alleges domestic violence, she can apply for a special visa and gain permanent entry to the United States.

In Oakland, there are many, many activists in "domestic violence" and a local law firm, the Family Violence Law Center, has been able essentially to act as a surrogate for the prosecutor's office. Under some judges, there was no pretense of impartiality, the FVLC lawyers got many special privileges and status.

All these unfair practices have become increasingly mainstream, as many men well know. The most prominent example of this is the Family Justice Center, with big Federal funding, and the Attorney General's wife jumping on the bandwagon.

The only good news is, as a political opportunist, she may not be a man hating zealot like those who came before her.

It seems likely Bill Lockyer has violated state laws against elected officials using their influence to enrich their spouses. The wife is definitely under-qualified for the job, which pays $90,000 per year. Furthermore, the job used to pay $65,000 but the pay got upped another $25,000 after the wife got the job. According to FJC staff, they, "found some more money".

The zealots losing out to outsiders might have some good effects, but on the other hand, the fact that there is this much money and prestige in these phony organizations can not be a good thing.