The New York Times today continued their spotlight series on the failing right to counsel in New York, focusing on the story of client Kimberly Hurrell-Harring -- the named plaintiff in the NYCLU's class action lawsuit -- and her now disbarred public defender Patrick Barber. This i
WISCONSIN: Wisconsin's right to counsel system should stand as a model to the rest of the country. The state funds and administers indigent defense services through a statewide Public Defender System that largely meets the ABA Ten Principles. However, the system has long had a "dirty little secret."
When elected judges have the authority to give out big payments for assigned cases without being fiscally responsible for doing so, a state like Alabama creates the “perfect storm” of characteristics that virtually guarantees ineffective assistance of counsel to the poor. A great newspaper series from Mobile’s Lagniappe is starting to highlight these issues and