Pre-trial Difficulties — Public Defenders — Galsworthy Criminal Justice Reform Program

Public Defenders

Defendants on the lower end of the socio-economic scale find themselves at the mercy of public defenders who are swamped with cases, understaffed, and underfunded. Research shows that even before mass incarceration accelerated in the 1980s, overburdened systems of indigent defense struggled to meet the 6th Amendment constitutional mandate. Public defenders usually have the deck stacked against them due to discovery laws favoring prosecutors and lack of sufficient resources.

Louisiana judge threatens to appoint every eligible lawyer to death penalty case

“The wait list for capital defense representation has been growing for a year and a half, since the state legislature diverted $3 million from the board’s $8.5 million capital defense fund to local public defender offices, a move Dixon describes as ‘basically rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.’ Currently seven people facing the death penalty are in jail indefinitely because they can’t afford a lawyer—a situation that Bunton calls the ‘worst kind of limbo’ for defendants, as well as victims’ families.“

The Appeal

October 29, 2018

Lack of Funding, Pre-trial DifficultiesPhillip ReevesOctober 29, 2018The Appeal, LouisianaComment

The Truth in Trump’s Law-Enforcement Hypocrisy

“This is the difference between justice for the masses and justice for the few. I’m not upset at how well Mr. Trump’s friends and colleagues have been treated. After all, the Constitution worked for them. I just want that same treatment for my clients.“

New York Times

September 19, 2018

Pre-trial DifficultiesPhillip ReevesSeptember 19, 2018New York Times, Michael Cohen, Paul ManafortComment

Public Defenders

Galsworthy CJR Program

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