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232 Results
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Michigan clears first legislative hurdle on way to reforming indigent defense
Pleading the Sixth: On September 19, 2012, the Michigan House Judiciary Committee favorably voted the indigent defense reform bill on to the full House on an overwhelmingly bi-partisan basis. A week earlier, the bill was almost derailed in the committee by testimony from a representative of the Office of the…
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Exploring the link between over-incarceration and a deficient right to counsel
Pleading the Sixth: A recent report by the PEW Center on the States concludes that states wasted $10 billion incarcerating people with little impact on public safety to show for the investment. The Sixth Amendment Center adds to the story by linking the long-standing right to counsel systemic deficiencies to…
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Shelby County, TN (Memphis) faces difficult decisions in the wake of critical DOJ report
Pleading the Sixth: (Part 2 of a two-part series.) The United States Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division (DOJ-CRD) delivered a report to Shelby County, Tennessee (Memphis) in April 2012 stating the local court fails to ensure due process to children in delinquency courts. The Sixth Amendment Center discusses the implications for…
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DOJ finds a lack of due process for children in Memphis delinquency courts
Pleading the Sixth: (Part 1 of a two-part series.) The United States Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division (DOJ-CRD) delivered a report to Shelby County, Tennessee (Memphis) in April 2012 stating the Juvenile Court of Memphis and Shelby County (JCMSC) fails to ensure a meaningful right to counsel for children in…
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Indigent defense bill introduced in Michigan legislature
Pleading the Sixth: A sweeping indigent defense reform bill was introduced in the Michigan legislature on August 15, 2012 that promises to bring accountability to and improve the quality of right to counsel services in the state. Initial signs are positive as 68% of the House of Representatives have already signed…
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MO prosecutors take issue with state court decision on PD caseload controls
Pleading the Sixth: (Part 2 of a two-part series.) On July 31, 2012, the Missouri Supreme Court ruled that the state public defender commission has the authority to declare unavailability due to case overload. In response, the Missouri Association of Prosecuting Attorneys issued a press statement on August 3rd that the…
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MO Supreme Court rules that public defense commission can decline cases
Pleading the Sixth: (Part 1 of a two-part series.) On July 31, 2012, the Missouri Supreme Court ruled that the state public defender commission has the authority to declare unavailability due to case overload. In response, the Missouri Association of Prosecuting Attorneys issued a press statement on August 3rd that the…
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Florida institutes a “dangerous game of chance” in conflict representation
Pleading the Sixth: A new Florida statute allows judges to limit compensation for private attorneys handling conflict indigent defense cases. A June 2012 Florida Innocence Commission report says the law “invites ineffective assistance of counsel and wrongful convictions.” As some circuits impose the new requirements, the Florida Association of Criminal…
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A showdown brewing over Early Case Resolution programs in Reno
Pleading the Sixth: In January 2008, the Nevada Supreme Court removed the judiciary from the oversight of indigent defense services. On June 8, 2012, a Washoe County (Reno) District Judge tested that mandate with his own administrative order imposing an early case resolution pilot project that will do an end-around…
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Maryland OPD receives 7.4% budget increase to staff bail hearings
Pleading the Sixth: In DeWolfe v. Richmond, the Maryland Supreme Court found that existing statutes require the right to counsel at bail hearings and reviews. The General Assembly reacted by increasing the budget of the Office of the Public Defender nearly 7.4% while contemporaneously passing legislation requiring police to issue citations –…
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Michigan Governor’s Advisory Commission recommends sweeping changes
Pleading the Sixth: On June 22, 2012, a high-profile, bi-partisan commission appointed by Michigan Governor Rick Snyder unanimously adopted a set of findings and recommendations that will change the way the state provides right to counsel services, if legislatively passed in the coming months. A permanent, independent commission with authority to…
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Criminal justice issues that disproportionately harm poor people, such as wrongful convictions and over-incarceration, cannot be fixed if indigent defendants are given attorneys who do not have the time, resources, or qualifications, to be a constitutional check on government. Yet, investment in improving indigent defense services remains largely neglected. The Sixth Amendment Center is the only nonprofit organization in the country that exclusively examines, uncovers, and helps fix the root of the indigent defense crisis in which inequality is perpetuated because poor defendants do not get a fair fight.
The Sixth Amendment Center is a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization under EIN: 45-3477185.
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