Public Defenders

How elimination of cash bail is working in Illinois after 1 month

The jail population is down in Cook County, Illinois, and pretrial detention hearings are getting longer throughout the state after a law eliminating cash bail took effect.

Oct 20, 2023 8:50 AM CDT

Meet Tanya Chutkan, the judge who won’t allow Trump to call special counsel ‘deranged’

A judge with a reputation for being “temperate but unflinching” imposed a partial gag order on former President Donald Trump on Monday. Judge Tanya Chutkan ruled that Trump can’t attack special counsel Jack Smith, his family, his staff and witnesses.

Oct 16, 2023 1:22 PM CDT

In ‘watershed moment,’ report recommends new guidelines for public defender caseloads

Many public defenders are “overloaded” with work, even when caseloads are evaluated under outdated guidelines drafted in 1973 that don't reflect modern-day realities, according to a new study released Tuesday.

Sep 13, 2023 2:24 PM CDT

Federal judge orders release of county’s unrepresented defendants, says problem is ‘complete tragedy’

A federal judge in Eugene, Oregon, has ruled that defendants held without lawyers for 10 days in Washington County, Oregon’s jail must be released from custody.

Aug 18, 2023 11:40 AM CDT

High-earning, court-appointed lawyer failed to provide ‘even a modicum of representation,’ suit alleges

When a Houston man was arrested on suspicion of driving while intoxicated in July 2018, he was “a happily married 65-year-old man.” By the time that his case was dismissed in February 2022, he had lost his home, his truck and his wife.

Aug 9, 2023 2:13 PM CDT

ABA House OKs updated 10 principles for public defense; ‘we cannot allow a two-tier system of justice’

The House of Delegates approved a measure adopting a new iteration of the ABA Ten Principles of a Public Defense Delivery System at the ABA Annual Meeting in Denver on Monday.

Aug 8, 2023 9:10 AM CDT

Congressional budgeting error could slash funds for federal public defenders

Federal public defenders may have to lay off as many as 500 people as a result of a congressional budgeting error in pending spending bills.

Jul 20, 2023 11:25 AM CDT

Lawyer’s racist and anti-Muslim rants on social media entitle defendant to new trial, court rules

The top court in Massachusetts has granted a new trial to a Black, Muslim defendant whose appointed lawyer expressed “vitriolic hatred” and racism in social media posts. The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court granted a new trial for Anthony J. Dew in a June 15 opinion. Dew was represented by court-appointed…

Jun 16, 2023 4:10 PM CDT

The public defender approach to personal life

I started my legal career in the Oklahoma County Public Defender’s Office. During one of my 1L first-semester classes, the Oklahoma County public defender and the Oklahoma County district attorney spoke with my section. They conveyed the opportunities available in their offices and explained the application process. I knew from the beginning of law school that I wanted to practice criminal defense, so I showed up at the PD’s office the next day. The intern coordinator kindly told me to wait until I had at least finished my first round of final exams.

May 10, 2023 2:52 PM CDT

Court watch movement is growing in numbers and public attention

For the past two years, singer-songwriter Fiona Apple has volunteered with Courtwatch PG, the largest court watch program in the country, to observe legal proceedings in Prince George’s County, Maryland, from her home in Los Angeles. Apple has also joined a group of advocates calling attention to the concept of court watching and aiming to get more people involved.

Apr 19, 2023 8:24 AM CDT

28% of lawyers in this state considered leaving the profession because of mental health, burnout or stress

Forty-nine percent of surveyed lawyers in New Jersey have reported moderate to high levels of burnout, a percentage that is nearly twice as high as the level of burnout in the general U.S. working population, according to a survey by a task force of the New Jersey State Bar Association.

Apr 18, 2023 9:30 AM CDT

ABA has a long history of advocating for indigent defense and public defenders

For more than a century, the ABA has advocated on issues related to indigent defense, primarily through its Standing Committee on Legal Aid and Indigent Defense. In fact, SCLAID (when it was operating as the Standing Committee on Legal Aid Work) stated in its 1937 annual report: “We believe that every man accused of serious crime is absolutely entitled to counsel and that, if too poor to employ one, society must furnish him that lawyer.”

Apr 1, 2023 12:20 AM CDT

Court backlogs persist in this state because of shortage of attorneys; ‘the wheels of justice depend on lawyers’

Georgia courts are having trouble addressing case backlogs because the state has a shortage of lawyers, including prosecutors and public defenders, the state’s chief justice said this week.

Mar 10, 2023 1:50 PM CST

ABA task force issues 14 guiding principles to improve plea bargaining system

An ABA task force that spent three years examining problems in plea bargaining has released recommendations that judges, lawyers, lawmakers and other stakeholders can follow to create a fairer, more transparent process.

Feb 22, 2023 9:48 AM CST

Weekly Briefs: SCOTUS nixes immigration arguments; decapitation defendant attacks her lawyer

SCOTUS drops arguments in immigration case The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday removed a case from its argument calendar in which 19 states sought to keep in place an immigrant expulsion policy. The policy, based on Title 42 of the U.S. Code, quickly expelled asylum seekers on the ground they…

Feb 17, 2023 3:45 PM CST