The Federal Public Defender System in the Country.

Our legal system provides that all persons are entitled to a defense and that the accused who cannot afford the cost of an attorney is entitled to have a lawyer appointed by the court. Our Federal System has had a long history of Public Defenders Offices staffed by attorneys who defend the poor involved in criminal cases. These offices are experiencing deep and difficult budget cuts. Some federal public defenders have shut their doors to new clients after big layoffs. On September 2, 2013, NPR reported that an unprecedented recent court filing from the Justice Department has cheered the typically overburdened attorneys who represent the poor and could have dramatic implications for the representation of indigent defendants. “This is a breakthrough moment,” Norman Reimer of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers told an audience earlier this month at the Law Library of Congress. “If you want to talk about something that could give us cause for optimism, this to me is the most optimistic development we have seen in years.” According to lawyers at the Justice Department, the 17 page filing does not give the impression of a historic milestone, but they think that the decision to weigh in on a case about the quality of indigent defense in two cities north of Seattle is nothing short of historic. NPR quotes “We are absolutely committed to the principle that every indigent person who is accused of a crime is entitled to his or her constitutional right to effective assistance of counsel,” says Jocelyn Samuels, who leads the DOJ civil rights unit.

As a private trial attorney in practice for over 38 years, I strongly support the work of the Public Defender’s Office, at both state and federal level although I have never worked as one. I think these lawyers are unsung heroes in our legal system. They do not get fancy headlines in recognition of their work and often receive a salary that is much lower than what they could command in the private sector; they do what they do out of a sense of commitment to the right to a defense provided by our system.

I have seen the struggle under which the public defenders offices, both state and federal, are laboring under right now. Deep budget cuts affect the personnel that they have with which to tackle complicated cases, as well as other resources necessary to properly bring a case to trial. In my opinion, states and the federal government have to rethink the current approach that cuts and more cuts to budgets at the public defender level. There has to be a more equitable approach to a balanced budget. In my estimation, it is wrong to make cuts in areas where the poor and the marginalized need the protection of the law and of lawyers. Particularly in our system which goes to great lengths to guarantee the right to legal representation.

About Martin E. Regan, Jr.

Year after year, Martin E. Regan Jr., the firm’s senior partner, has dedicated tireless efforts on behalf of the accused and produce wins for clients that a less determined advocate would have thought hopeless.  Martin E. Regan Jr.’s ability to tackle and win tough criminal cases has resulted in verdicts of acquittal in many highly publicized trials.