Pleading the Sixth: In October 2014, the prosecutors’ association in South Carolina released their 2015-2016 budget request, stating that prosecutors in that state carry 2.5 times the “criminal justice” caseload standards recommended by the American Bar Association (ABA) in seeking…
Tag: standards
Defense leader uses the world stage to expose Congress’ failure to stem America’s indigent defense crisis
Pleading the Sixth: A keynote address by the director of the New York State Office of Indigent Legal Services at The Hague on April 5, 2014, served as an indictment of the right to counsel in America and of the…
Michigan passes public defense reform legislation
Pleading the Sixth: On June 13, 2013 the Michigan Legislature passed separate yet identical right to counsel reform bills in each chamber of the legislature. On June 19th, the Michigan Senate held a concurrence vote on the House version of…
The clock runs out on Michigan reform for this year
Pleading the Sixth: At 4:30 AM on December 14, 2012, time ran out for indigent defense reform in Michigan for this year, as HB 5804 was not able to make it through the Senate before the final bell of the…
New reports promote public defender model for Texas
Pleading the Sixth: Two new independent reports out of Texas conclude that the public defender model provides better, more cost-efficient representation than the assigned counsel model. In a companion piece, a 2011 U.S. Department of Justice report makes the same argument.…
Tagged with: assigned counsel, conflicts, DOJ, Harris County TX, public defender office, standards, Ten Principles, Texas, Wichita County TX
Are public defenders better than appointed counsel? DOJ says “yes”
Pleading the Sixth: A 2011 report by the United States Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics concludes that the public defender model provides better, more cost-efficient representation than the assigned counsel model. In a companion piece, the same argument…
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