subject: Attorneys Say "no Way" When It Comes To Representing Poor Criminal Defendants [print this page] Today, a legislative committee informed the public that, unless something dramatic was done, three large counties of a state on the Eastern end of the US would have a complete dearth of lawyers who would accept indigent criminal cases. Hourly rates paid to attorneys who voluntarily represent poor defendants in criminal cases needs to increase if not double, according to judges from these three, large counties.
One judge from the area also said that the attorneys who will take on these cases have very little experience. This list, which has shrunk in the past couple years, is suffering because of money issues. According to this judge, because the lawyers aren't getting paid enough for those kinds of cases, and as a result poor people will not have the experienced counsel necessary to have a fair chance. He'd like the billable hourly rate for the lawyers to be doubled.
Tons more money is to be had by working with civil suits and drawing up wills and deeds. They don't want attorneys to think that, just because they're working for the state, they won't make much money. The vast majority of the state's criminal cases need appointed lawyers, and some lawyers lose more money than others taking the cases.
A budget struggle created a reduction in the amount of money that attorneys received from the state for doing their indigent defense work several decades ago. The price per hour was cut down a lot, both in and out of the courthouse. The state is paying just about what they paid twenty years ago. One judge suggested a return to the rates, at least, as he supported his peer.
His court is not able to function as smoothly because so many lawyers have removed their names from his volunteer list. The judge hopes that perhaps if rates are returned to their previous amounts, some of the attorneys who are considering ceasing their indigent work will keep working. Maybe some other attorneys will agree to take the cases again, too. They do like the system that is used currently, but argue that the lawyers are simply not paid well enough.
Only a small number of practicing attorneys on one county's list of over 300 are willing to represent indigent defendants, and this number is expected to drop even further. According to one county judge, approximately 90% of lawyers who have asked to be dropped from the volunteer list pointed to inadequate compensation as the main reason. Only one-fourth of the lawyers in one district will agree to take on indigent criminal cases. That number has since shrunk. This committee responsible for offering official recommendations to the state legislature did not move forward with any action regarding whether they should boost the pay for participating attorneys or not.
