Legal Ethics
Overworked Florida PDs Try to Turn Away Clients
Posted Jul 17, 2008, 06:18 pm CDT
By Martha Neil
Faced with a crushing workload of, on average, nearly 400 felony cases per attorney, the Miami public defender's office is taking a drastic step.
Like at least two other public defender's offices in the state, it is seeking court permission to turn away clients, because the overworked lawyers in the office can't represent them properly, reports Local10.com.
"Each person has a right to meaningful representation and a meaningful day in court. They are not getting that," Bennett Brummer, Miami's public defender, tells the Associated Press. He is to retire in January after 32 years on the job.
Related coverage:
ABAJournal.com: "Low-Paid Fla. Prosecutors, Defenders Are Quitting"
ABAJournal.com: "Starting at $40K, FL Jobs a Stepping-Stone"
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Comments
Posted by bob - 2 months, 2 weeks, 6 days, 17 hours, 47 minutes ago
Yeah well, if overzealous police officers would actually wait until they truly had probable cause before they cuffed our citizens then maybe the work load would be bearable. These guys should get fined for shot gunning there high school education and a badge power on people who merely get on their nerves or irritate them.
Like this jackass Sgt. Kuehnlien said, “Try and talk back… to me again,” yelled Sergeant Kuehnlein. “I bet I could say you resisted arrest or something. You want to come up with something? I come up with nine things.”
Little did he know the camera was running, and wouldn’t you know it the tape from his squad car came up missing for that night. He lost his job, but only because he was recorded. Props to Brett Darrow for helping out the PD’s office and removing about 100 cases a year from the docket. Maybe, we all need cameras..
Video of your everyday typical police officer:
http://www.thenewspaper.com/news/19/1961.asp
Posted by kay sieverding - 2 months, 2 weeks, 4 days, 8 hours, 36 minutes ago
I was charged in Routt County CO and the prosecutor actually refused to tell me or my lawyer what the probable cause was. There was no warrant either. When I pled “not guilty”, the prosecutor, P.Elizabeth Wittemyer, who I hate, dismissed the charges and gave a press conference saying it was too expensive to have a trial and that the “victim” agreed. The police didn’t report a crime.
My former neighbor accused me of harassing her by complaining about government corruption.
Posted by kay sieverding - 2 months, 2 weeks, 3 days, 8 hours, 56 minutes ago
Using prisoner, defendant and volunteer resources could alleviate these problems of too much work for the public defenders. 1.) Prison and public law libraries should be very complete and computerized so that defendants can participate effectively 2.) Criminal ECF should be made top notch and their lawyers should email defendants documents for review before they are filed and 3.) Prisoners should have access to email, restricted only when necessary for real security concerns.
Prisoners have “time on their hands”. It is already shown the medical outcomes are improved when the patient participates. The same result should be expected by enabling defendants thru educational resources. It is very expensive to have such a high incarceration rate. There are extreme indirect costs to the family and the incarcerated person as well as to the economy. Even if a person really is guilty, if they are encouraged to study law and dealt with fairly they might want to cease offending more than if they just feel powerless and despised.