Issue Summary.
New York has failed to insure fairness for people who can't afford to hire a lawyer; the current statutory system for providing legal representation mandated by law has failed. 1
The report, titled “Lessons Not Learned,” by the Innocence Project, detailed 23 wrongful convictions in New York that have been overturned through DNA evidence,
Coalition Position.
The delivery
of indigent defense services in NYS should
be restructured to insure enforceability of
standards, and quality representation for all
indigent offenders.
Adequate funding of indigent criminal defense must be provided by the New York Legislature from the State's General Fund, not from the counties.
The system for funding indigent criminal defense services should provide for elimination of the overall disparity between prosecution and defense resources so as to achieve "adequate and balanced" funding defense representation.
A
comprehensive date collection system designed to provide
an accurate picture of the
provision of indigent criminal defense
services in New York
should be established and maintained.
Rationale.
1. There are no clear standards regarding eligibility determination and procedures.
2. There is no statewide standard that defines "adequate" indigent defense and there exists no mechanism to enforce any particular set of standards.
3.
The amount of monies
currently allocated within the State of New York for the provision of
constitutionally-mandated
indigent defense is grossly inadequate.
4. The current method of providing indigent defense services in New York
imposes a large unfunded mandate by the State upon its counties, results in a
very uneven distribution of services and
compromises the independence of defense providers.
5. In Town and Village Courts, there is a widespread denial of the right to counsel and even a lack of clear understanding as to which cases trigger the right to counsel.
6. There is a significant statewide disparity between the resources available to public defenders and those enjoyed by prosecutors.
7. Defense providers are not providing the requisite counseling with regard to collateral issues that can affect critically a defendant's case. Insofar as minorities are disproportionably represented in the criminal justice system, this failure has particular implications for individuals in those communities.
1.
http://www.courts.state.ny.us/ip/indigentdefense-commission/IndependentDefenseCommission_report06.pdf Final Report to the Chief Judge of NYS; Commission on the
Future of Indigent Defense Services
A summary of all 12 planks can be found at Summary
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