Free Press Editorial on Public Defense in Michigan

On Tuesday, December 1, 2009, the Detroit Free Press ran an editorial entitled Public Defense Must be Upgraded.   The editorial opens, “Scandalously low pay. No standards. That’s the world of court-appointed attorneys in Michigan, and it’s a sham of the constitutional right to adequate legal counsel.”  The article cites an interesting statistic that Michigan ranks “44th among the 50 states in spending — lower than Alabama.”

A House subcommittee and the Michigan Campaign for Justice looked at the issue and recommended adequate state funding and a state commission to oversee an office of public defense that would provide training and enforce uniform and reasonable standards.  The editorial states that a package of bills will be introduced in the State House this month to address indigent defense.  I hope indigent defense for juvenile delinquents, Lawyer-Guardian Ad Litems and respondents in child protection proceedings are included in the legislation.

With the budget woes in Lansing, it is natural to be skeptical that the State would take any action to  increase the amount the it spends on anything, let alone indigent defense.  However, there are a number of signs pointing to the fact that this may not be something Michigan can continue to ignore.

In 2008, the National Legal Aid and Defender Association released the findings of a study of Michigan’s public defense system, giving it failing grades in the areas of system independence, funding and structure; the method of screening for a client’s eligibility for public defense services; confidentiality; attorney availability, competency, consistency, training and quality; equality of resources among prosecutors and public defenders in a case; and a public defender’s advocacy for his or her client.

In March, the U.S. House Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security, a subcommittee within the House Committee on the Judiciary, held hearings to examine the extensive problems with how the State of Michigan ensures each resident’s 6th Amendment right to counsel.

In August, the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin released a report (From Time Out to Hard Time) that found Michigan to be among the states with the most problematic theoretical and actual outcomes for young children who commit serious crimes along with Florida,  Pennsylvania, and South Carolina.  The report points out that children as young as 7 could receive a sentence of life without parole in Michigan.

Put simply, Michigan’s public defense system is getting a black eye nationally and this may provide the proper motivation for the legislature to act.   Although, I must admit, it is going to be difficult to overcome public opinion against spending money defending people accused of committing crimes or abusing or neglecting their children.  Naturally, I will be following this issue and posting any updates here.

© 2009, Melinda Deel. All rights reserved.