February 5, 2010 at 9:28 am
· Filed under News and Developments
- 2.4.10 – Southeast Missourian – in his State of the Judiciary speech, Missouri Chief Justice William Ray Price noted that, in addition to the strains on the justice system caused by the incarceration of many non-violent offenders, “[i]ncreasing pressure … also has come from defending the poor who are accused of crimes.” Price acknowledged that the state’s prosecutors and public defenders are working with thinly stretched resources and “said lawmakers can resolve the problems plaguing indigent defense by putting more money into the public defender system or granting it more authority to determine what clients it will accept.” Link to article. [Ed Note: for earlier coverage of the indigent defense crisis in Missouri, a problem which wound its way to the state’s high court, listen to this December 2009 NPR story.]
- 2.3.10 – Wichita Eagle “Common Law” Blog – in summer 2009, a courtroom reporter with the Wichita Eagle began the “Common Law” blog, through which he documented the everyday exploits of a local judge, prosecutor, public defender and court staff with a video camera. Now, the reporter, Ron Sylvester, has gathered video highlights from “Season 1” of the blog as he prepares for another season. The blog’s video posts shed light on how the primary actors in the criminal justice system do their jobs, and the challenges that they face. Link to blog post. [Ed Note: here are the blog posts introducing the public defender and the prosecutor.]
- 2.3.10 – San Francisco Chronicle – civil rights and public interest organizations are opposing the nomination of Sharon Browne, an attorney with the conservative/libertarian Pacific Legal Foundation, to the Legal Services Corporation’s board of directors. In accordance with a traditional practice to maintain bipartisanship on LSC’s board, President Obama followed the recommendation of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell in nominating Browne and two other Republicans. Browne’s nomination, in particular, has troubled some in the public interest community because of her work with the Pacific Legal Foundation, which has opposed some sources of funding for the legal services community as well as affirmative action programs. Link to article. [Ed. Note: for coverage of the National Legal Aid & Defender Association’s opposition to Ms. Browne’s nomination, as well as background on the LSC board nomination process, see our earlier PSLawNet Blog post.]
- 2.2.10 – Nat’l. Legal Aid & Defender Association “Legal Aid News” Email Distribution – on the issue of Legal Services Corporation funding in President Obama’s FY2011 budget proposal, NLADA reports that “the President is seeking $435 million for the Legal Services Corporation (LSC). This is the same level of funding recommended in FY 2010 and only $15 million more than the amount [actually] appropriated [by Congress] for FY 2010. The President’s request also includes, unchanged from the President’s request in FY 2010, language regarding removal of the current restrictions on non-LSC funds, as well as the restrictions on attorneys’ fees and participation in class action suits. The restriction on attorneys’ fees was lifted in the FY 2010 appropriation enacted into law last December, while the restrictions on non-LSC funds and class actions remain.” LSC had requested an appropriation of $516.5 million for FY2011.
- 2.1.10 – Dallas Morning News “Trail Blazers” Blog – there is verbal “sparring between lawyers for poor Texans trying to get food stamps and the embattled state [Health and Human Services Commission] that’s trying to fix a years-old mess in its eligibility-determination.” Texas RioGrande Legal Aid, which sued the Commission over delays in processing food stamp applications, asserts that the agency is not keeping to its schedule to address the backlog, while the agency disputes that claim. Link to blog post. [Ed. Note: for past coverage of the lawsuit, see December 2009 coverage from the Dallas Morning News.]
- 2.1.10 – Wall Street Journal – the “once-booming nonprofit sector is in the midst of a shakeout, leaving many Americans without services and culling weak groups from the strong. Hit by a drop in donations and government funding in the wake of a deep recession, nonprofits—from arts councils to food banks—are undergoing a painful restructuring, including mergers, acquisitions, collaborations, cutbacks and closings.” Link to blog post. [Ed. Note: among the nonprofits whose financial woes are covered is the D.C.-based public interest law office Women Empowered Against Violence (WEAVE), which faced the prospect of folding in late 2009 but survived due to an 11th-hour fundraising campaign by supporters.]
- 2.1.10 – ABA Journal – the Journal rounds up recent news stories about anticipated layoffs in Wisconsin prosecutors’ offices, driven by strains on the state budget. Link to coverage.
- 2.1.10 – Philadelphia Inquirer – while no formal, national tracking is done about the numbers of criminal defendants who exercise their right to represent themselves at trial, some say that the choice “is becoming more common across the country” but remains “ill-advised.” In New Jersey an assistant public defender estimated that there may have been up to 150 pro se cases statewide in 2009. Some convictions in the Garden State have been overturned on appeal because defendants were not allowed to represent themselves at trial. Link to article.
- 1.31.10 – Wilkes Barre Times-Leader (Pennsylvania) – Philadelphia’s Juvenile Law Center, which was founded in 1976 by a group of idealistic Temple Law Grads who made financial sacrifices to build the organization from the ground up, has evolved to become a nationally recognized leader on children’s rights issues. Link to article.
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