Attorneys debated Monday whether the petition before Maine's Supreme Judicial Court, which calls on the state to identify everyone in jail without a lawyer, was filed appropriately.
Supreme Judicial Court Justice Wayne Douglas will meet Monday with attorneys to discuss the petition to identify and release from county jails low-income people who are being held pretrial without an attorney.
Two attorneys, concerned about Maine’s legal defense system for the poor, are urging the state's highest court to release a woman they say has been jailed for more than 80 days without a court-appointed attorney – as well as anyone “similarly situated.”
Two attorneys, concerned about Maine’s legal defense system for the poor, are urging the state's highest court to release a woman they say has been jailed for more than 80 days without a court-appointed attorney – as well as anyone “similarly situated.”
Two attorneys are asking the Maine Supreme Judicial Court to release all pre-trial criminal defendants who do not have an attorney. Many in the court system say there is no way to track how many defendants are going without representation for days or weeks.