Letter in Support of California SB 345

The National Association for Public Defense (NAPD) stands in strong support for Senate Bill 345, a law that would require state and local law enforcement to release their manuals and policies, which are not exempt from disclosure, online. This measure […]

Public Comment on the National Commission on Forensic Science

NAPD encourages the Department of Justice to continue the National Commission on Forensic Science, to complete the discipline review and uniform language projects, and to support the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s role assessing the technical merit and the […]

Joint Statement in Support of the Use of Pretrial Risk Assessment Instruments

Therefore, [we] strongly endorse and call for the use of validated pretrial risk assessment in all jurisdictions, as a necessary component of a fair pretrial release system that reduces unnecessary detention and eliminates racial bias, along with the following checks […]

Foundational Principles

We firmly believe that that the following foundational principles are essential to help guide all of us in the public defense community as we move forward together not only to address systemic failures of our criminal and juvenile justice systems […]

Statement on Reducing Demand For Public Defense

NAPD makes eight recommendations to reduce defender workload, save money, and reduce recidivism.

Letter to the Orleans District Attorney

Letter relating to the prosecution of a public defense investigator. “Circumstances in Orleans Parish require us to speak out against your decision to use the full force of the criminal justice system to target an investigator at the OPD for […]

Statement on the 2016 Election

“This month’s elections produced for our federal government a change in course of grave importance for all whose lives are impacted by our criminal justice system, our immigration policies and the legal framework that guarantees our civil rights. As the […]

Letter to Aurora, CO, City Council

“By giving the City Manager the power to hire and fire the Chief Public Defender and his/her assistants, we believe the city would be acting is in direct conflict with the advice of the United States Supreme Court, and nationally […]

Letter to New York Governor on State Funding

The National Association for Public Defense urges you to sign the pending legislation that will require New York State to reimburse its counties for the cost of providing public defense services.

Letter to Houston County, GA, Board of Commissioners

Letter relating to the termination of a chief public defender who raised ethical concerns about workloads.