I’m Not Impressed, and Frankly, I’m a Little Offended

A few years ago, Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Randy Newman released a song he called, A Few Words in Defense of Our Country.  In that song he 'defends' our country's leaders, "while they're the worse we've ever had, [they're] hardly […]

Reducing Demand for Public Defenders – Good for the Clients, Good for Us

Steve Hanlon gives us a useful way to think about the chronic problem of too much workload.   He says there is a “supply side”:  defender leaders try to get more resources.  Defender leaders keep better data, build better relationships with funders, increase community […]

No Mas! Local Sheriffs Stop Honoring Immigration Detainers

When it comes to the detention of immigrants in local jails, business as usual is no more.  A veritable wave of sheriffs across the country have abruptly stopped honoring detainer requests from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in the wake of federal […]

First Put on Your Own Oxygen Mask

    I had been a public defender a few weeks, when my mom called to tell me that my step-sister had died of an accidental overdose. On medication for her bi-polar disease, she drank vodka which made her vomit and choke […]

The Voracious, Drooling Monster & Me

Sometimes our job as advocates is to hold back the voracious, drooling monster that is the court system just long enough to give our clients enough space to decide for themselves how they will battle the beast.  Today was one […]

The Unfathomable Desire to Continue Killing

I had intended to write about another subject but last night Oklahoma tortured Clayton Lockett to death in a botched execution.  I live in a state (Ohio) that has a history of botched executions.  On January 16th of this year, Ohio executed Dennis […]

Strategic Litigation at the Innocence Project: Fighting to Change the Law around the Leading Causes of Wrongful Conviction

The Innocence Project is seeking partners to litigate test cases involving unreliable forensic sciences and eyewitness misidentification.  Attorneys with cases of potential interest should contact the IP directly at the email address provided below.  On the morning of November 3, […]

Warrior for Justice

When I started in the Hennepin County Public Defender’s Office over 20 years ago, I was told there were certain public defenders I just had to watch in trial.  One of them was Jim Krieger, a cowboy boot-wearing legend in the […]

Montana caseload challenge results in a significant increase in resources

“Although the Court sympathizes with the Office of the Public Defender and agrees that its attorneys face growing caseloads … This court can find no authority … to grant the motion filed.” Thus concluded an October 10, 2013 court order in response […]

The Special Few

Editor's note – This post is a response to yesterday's post by Jacinta Hall .  Both originated as emails to the Gideon's Promise listserv and have been reworked slightly for NAPD. Your email is sad.  But it is also such a powerful reminder of […]