Judge Finds Missouri Public Defender Waiting List Unconstitutional
The judge stayed the case to give Missouri lawmakers time to approve more funding in hopes of eliminating the waiting list.
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public defenders
Public Defenders
A federal court in Florida denied retiring Broward County Public Defender Howard Finkelstein’s request to dismiss a suit brought by Ruby Green, a former assistant public defender, who says she was wrongfully fired over statements she made while campaigning to replace him.
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Closing Arguments Delivered in Trial Over Missouri Public Defender Wait List
Missouri’s efforts to reduce the time poor criminal defendants must wait for a public defender are commendable but they don’t make the state’s waiting list constitutional, an ACLU attorney said Wednesday during closing arguments of a two-day bench trial.
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Bench Trial Over Missouri Public Defender Waiting Lists Kicks Off
Missouri’s practice of placing poor criminal defendants on a wait list for a public defender was the best option among bad choices in balancing right to counsel with overwhelming caseloads, the former director of the state’s public defender office testified Tuesday in a trial challenging the system.
Read moreOverworked Public Defenders
A Missouri appeals court reversed the denial of a public defender’s office request for relief from excessive caseloads. While courts cannot review whether the public defender’s office has exceeded a caseload standard, it may consider whether individual public defender attorneys are unable to provide effective assistance of counsel due to caseload issues.
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Judge Grants Class Status in Missouri Public Defender Case
A Missouri judge has granted class certification to a group of indigent criminal defendants challenging the state’s practice of putting them on a waiting list for a public defender.
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Class Status Sought in Missouri Suit Over Public Defender Wait List
A lawyer for a group of indigent defendants challenging Missouri’s practice of putting them on a waiting list for a public defender urged a state judge Friday morning to let them sue as a class.
Read moreSue the Courts
A former assistant public defender sued the Judicial Conference of the United States, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, et al., in federal court, claiming they conspired to violate her civil rights after she truthfully complained of sexual harassment, but “punished” and “intimidated” her for reporting it.
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Mediation Likely for Suit Over Counsel Interference at Brooklyn Jail
A year after an electrical fire cut off power and forced a Brooklyn detention center into lockdown, the Second Circuit appeared inclined Tuesday to let the parties mediate a suit over access to public defenders.
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Judge Rejects Beef Over Ballot Wording in LA County DA Race
A candidate for Los Angeles District Attorney’s office will be allowed to list her occupation as a federal public defender on the upcoming 2020 primary ballot, after an LA judge rejected a challenge Tuesday from a voter who claims the candidate no longer works in that office.
Read morePublic Defender
A former deputy public defender claims in superior court that his supervisor at the Maricopa County (Ariz.) Public Defender’s Office, et al., fired him after he objected to underrepresentation of Latinos in county jury pools.
Read moreOregon Public Defenders Walk Out to Seek Resources
Facing ever-mounting caseloads, dozens of public defenders in Oregon walked out of courthouses and into the Statehouse this week to lobby for a bill that would fix a staffing shortage and an outdated contract payment system that has some attorneys representing more than 200 clients at once.
Read moreKamala Harris Seeks $250 Million to Help Public Defenders
Democratic Sen. Kamala Harris of California is introducing legislation, including a $250 million grant program, to ease the burden on public defenders around the country.
Read moreAccused Mass Shooter’s Inheritance Spurs Public Defender Withdrawal
Public defenders for the man accused of murdering 17 people at his former high school in Florida asked a judge to let them withdraw from his case, saying his $432,000 inheritance disqualifies him from receiving the free legal counsel.
Read more13-Year Detention
A federal judge has given a man who was civilly confined in a state hospital for 13 years another chance at claims his public defenders mishandled his case so badly it amounts to deliberate indifference.
Read moreMissouri Justices Asked to Handle Strained Public Defender System
St. Louis County public defenders who say they have too many cases to guarantee criminal defendants’ rights to effective counsel should have their claims heard by Missouri’s highest court, a state appeals court ruled Wednesday.
Read moreMichigan County Sues Over New Public Defender Rules
Oakland County sued the Michigan Indigent Defense Commission over new state standards that will require counties to provide additional public defender services, arguing it will be too costly.
Read moreFifth Circuit Hears Challenge to Public-Defender Wait List
Attorneys for the American Civil Liberties Union and public defenders seemed to agree before the Fifth Circuit on Monday that a waiting list for representation in Louisiana violates poor defendants’ rights to a speedy trial and assistance of counsel.
Read moreReport Calls LA County Public Defenders Ill-Equipped for Noncitizen Clients
The Los Angeles County Public Defender’s Office lacks expert support in handling cases involving noncitizens, increasing their danger of deportation and other immigration-related consequences, a report released Wednesday says.
Read morePublic Defender Ramps Up Fight Against Albuquerque Judges
New Mexico’s Chief Public Defender has filed a class action against the judges of Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court, which covers Albuquerque, for failing to release felony detainees who wait more than 10 days before being seen by a judge.
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