After 13 years and a swell of support from the #FreeBritney movement, Britney Spears’ conservatorship is no more, following a Los Angeles judge’s ruling on Friday. Jonathan Martinis, an attorney and the senior director for law and policy at Syracuse University’s Burton Blatt Institute, joined Jim Braude on Greater Boston to discuss the potential implications of the case.
Martinis said guardianships and conservatorships are not necessarily bad in all cases. “The concern I have is for people who can manage and direct their own lives,” he said. “Before putting someone in a guardianship, the most important question you can ask: What else have you tried?” He noted that the most common and frequent people put under guardianships are 18- to 24-year-olds with intellectual disabilities.
It’s too early to tell how the ruling will impact legislation, but Martinis said it could inspire action. “I hope that like [her lawyer] said, Britney’s case does in fact shine a light and inspire others,” he said, noting that it is estimated that around 1.2 to 1.5 million people live under guardianships and conservatorships in the U.S. Of those, 90% have lost all of their rights.
“If Britney Spears can be a beacon for them to say, like she did, ‘I want my rights back,’ it will have a great impact.”
Watch: What does the Britney Spears ruling mean for the 1 million people under conservatorships in the U.S.?
