10th annual public defenders summit. Im so excited to be here today. Our office has been putting on this summit for the past 10 years. We draw together attorneys, community leaders, nonprofit leaders and directors and people committed to improving the criminal Justice System. We come together once a year to talk about the issues and problems that we want to solve. This year is a particularly special summit because yesterday marked the 50th an niversary of the Supreme Court decision. One of the most significant dimensions our country. On march 16, 1963, the court said you have a right to a lawyer. Even though it had been part of the constitution as the 6th amendment for years and years it was not recognized it was a right until they said it was an obligation by the state to provide a lawyer. It never would have happened unless gideon, a drifter who had been involved convicted for robbing a pool hall. At that time unless you were charged with a capital offense, you would not be given a l
This summit focused on the an verseey e anniversary of the gideon case. A promise and excitement following the United States Supreme Court decision has been a road trip marked by stoplight and heavy traffic. It was gideons mutual trumpet, the new book that talks about the harsh reality of the system where public defenders have to handle thousands of cases in a course of a year. Thats a tough reality whether its 500 or a thousand cases. Something that jim had an eye to handle more Business Litigation could not imagine handling and handling well. Thats why this anniversary and events like this are so important. They remind us why Court Funding and why funding of public defenders is so critical and invite vital. These days there is too much worry about funding the judicial system and not enough worry about the cost for equal justice. This is the 50th anniversary of gideon, more articles are written, more gatherings like this and more than any that i can remember. Maybe in California Armed
10th annual public defenders summit. Im so excited to be here today. Our office has been putting on this summit for the past 10 years. We draw together attorneys, community leaders, nonprofit leaders and directors and people committed to improving the criminal Justice System. We come together once a year to talk about the issues and problems that we want to solve. This year is a particularly special summit because yesterday marked the 50th an niversary of the Supreme Court decision. One of the most significant dimensions our country. On march 16, 1963, the court said you have a right to a lawyer. Even though it had been part of the constitution as the 6th amendment for years and years it was not recognized it was a right until they said it was an obligation by the state to provide a lawyer. It never would have happened unless gideon, a drifter who had been involved convicted for robbing a pool hall. At that time unless you were charged with a capital offense, you would not be given a l
10th annual public defenders summit. Im so excited to be here today. Our office has been putting on this summit for the past 10 years. We draw together attorneys, community leaders, nonprofit leaders and directors and people committed to improving the criminal Justice System. We come together once a year to talk about the issues and problems that we want to solve. This year is a particularly special summit because yesterday marked the 50th an niversary of the Supreme Court decision. One of the most significant dimensions our country. On march 16, 1963, the court said you have a right to a lawyer. Even though it had been part of the constitution as the 6th amendment for years and years it was not recognized it was a right until they said it was an obligation by the state to provide a lawyer. It never would have happened unless gideon, a drifter who had been involved convicted for robbing a pool hall. At that time unless you were charged with a capital offense, you would not be given a l
Our country. On march 16, 1963, the court said you have a right to a lawyer. Even though it had been part of the constitution as the 6th amendment for years and years it was not recognized it was a right until they said it was an obligation by the state to provide a lawyer. It never would have happened unless gideon, a drifter who had been involved convicted for robbing a pool hall. At that time unless you were charged with a capital offense, you would not be given a lawyer. You had to represent yourself. The gideon decision changed that for felony cases and that brought other cases. But this is still a basic right that we are fighting for each and every day there was a New York Times article yesterday, its called the right to council. Badly battered add at 50. In miami they handle more than 550,000 cases a year. All of city and county systems that pretty much rely on local funding to provide public defenders. In kentucky, 68 percent of poor people accused of misdemeanor short up for a