4 ms·

We've long required the state to provide an attorney to those that cannot afford one. It may now be necessary for the state to provide scientists to those that

by readams 11y ago

We've long required the state to provide an attorney to those that cannot afford one. It may now be necessary for the state to provide scientists to those that cannot afford them as well. Sadly prosecutors too often see their job as winning cases rather than serving justice.

coldtea 11y ago
>We've long required the state to provide an attorney to those that cannot afford one. It may now be necessary for the state to provide scientists to those that cannot afford them as well. Well, the state provided poor people bottom of the barrel attorneys, who didn't care much about the defendants (and had not much of a financial motive to), and urged them to plea so that they can move ahead, in a hell of a lot of cases. So, this "state scientist" process to exist, it should be really to work better than that if it's to do any good.
- sbov 11y ago
  It's not always that they don't care, it's also that the caseload can be insane - some public defenders being assigned upwards of 1,000 felony cases per year.
  - derefr 11y ago
    You'd think that supply would rise to meet demand. Being a public defender in a free market would be an attractive career: the stability of a public servant, and the lucrative nature of a skilled job requiring high intelligence. Of course, we don't have a free market; we have a lawyer's guild with a set yearly intake of applicants.
    - sbov 11y ago
      I don't see how you can have a free market for public defenders until jurisdictions started suffering consequences due to overloading them. E.g. if convictions started being overturned because of the caseload of public defenders things would turn around really fast. From what I can tell the maximum recommended felony caseload is 150-200 per year.
    - gamblor956 11y ago
      Don't blame the "lawyer's guild" for this. This is not a matter of supply and demand; there are currently more lawyers looking for work than there are jobs available. Public defenders are largely government employees. Most governments have resisted increasing the budgets of their respective Public Defenders' offices to allow for the hiring of additional staff. Blame the legislators, and blame the taxpayers for not wanting to pay an extra $1/year.
    - coldtea 11y ago
      >Being a public defender in a free market would be an attractive career: the stability of a public servant, and the lucrative nature of a skilled job requiring high intelligence. It's merely the "stability of a public servant" without anything lucrative about it. Just a require for high intelligence without the compensation (since the client is poor, and you're assigned by the state). Free vs non-free market doesn't come into play. If anything a totally "free market" would have the clients either pay themselves or not get representation at all, making their representation even poorer.

by readams 11y ago

coldtea 11y ago

>We've long required the state to provide an attorney to those that cannot afford one. It may now be necessary for the state to provide scientists to those that cannot afford them as well. Well, the state provided poor people bottom of the barrel attorneys, who didn't care much about the defendants (and had not much of a financial motive to), and urged them to plea so that they can move ahead, in a hell of a lot of cases. So, this "state scientist" process to exist, it should be really to work better than that if it's to do any good.

sbov 11y ago
It's not always that they don't care, it's also that the caseload can be insane - some public defenders being assigned upwards of 1,000 felony cases per year.
- derefr 11y ago
  You'd think that supply would rise to meet demand. Being a public defender in a free market would be an attractive career: the stability of a public servant, and the lucrative nature of a skilled job requiring high intelligence. Of course, we don't have a free market; we have a lawyer's guild with a set yearly intake of applicants.
  - sbov 11y ago
    I don't see how you can have a free market for public defenders until jurisdictions started suffering consequences due to overloading them. E.g. if convictions started being overturned because of the caseload of public defenders things would turn around really fast. From what I can tell the maximum recommended felony caseload is 150-200 per year.
  - gamblor956 11y ago
    Don't blame the "lawyer's guild" for this. This is not a matter of supply and demand; there are currently more lawyers looking for work than there are jobs available. Public defenders are largely government employees. Most governments have resisted increasing the budgets of their respective Public Defenders' offices to allow for the hiring of additional staff. Blame the legislators, and blame the taxpayers for not wanting to pay an extra $1/year.
  - coldtea 11y ago
    >Being a public defender in a free market would be an attractive career: the stability of a public servant, and the lucrative nature of a skilled job requiring high intelligence. It's merely the "stability of a public servant" without anything lucrative about it. Just a require for high intelligence without the compensation (since the client is poor, and you're assigned by the state). Free vs non-free market doesn't come into play. If anything a totally "free market" would have the clients either pay themselves or not get representation at all, making their representation even poorer.