In Louisiana, Defendants Convicted after Using Services of Public Defender Pay a Fee. A Brennan Center Report…
By: Steve Grumm
Here’s a piece by the Brennan Center about a law which, interestingly, funds the indigent defense program via fees paid by those who are convicted after being represented by a public defender:
In Louisiana, people who are represented by a public defender and are later convicted must pay a $35 fee to augment funding for public defenders even though they have already had a judicial determination made that they cannot afford an attorney. The fee creates a system that undermines the Constitutional right to conflict-free counsel by forcing attorneys to rely on their clients’ convictions for much needed funding. The existing fee already acts as an illogical tax on indigent defendants. And now there are two bills before the Louisiana House that would raise the fees on people who are likely unable to pay.
One question this piece doesn’t address is how many jurisdictions in addition to Louisiana also use a fee system like this one.