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Group discusses quality of indigent client representation in local courts
NATALIE PEACOCK
Legal News Reporter
Published: August 25, 2014
Are poor people represented fairly in the Summit County judicial system? In a recent panel discussion sponsored by the Summit County Progressive Democrats, everyone seemed to hold a slightly different opinion on the subject.
An audience of about 60 people listened to three panelists on the issue of “Representation of Indigent Felony Defendants in Summit County.” The panel included Summit County Common Pleas Judge Paul J. Gallagher, criminal defense attorney Brian Pierce and Summit County Deputy Chief Assistant Prosecutor Margaret Scott. Robert Gippin, president of Summit County Progressive Democrats, served as moderator.
As Judge Gallagher explained, Summit County provides legal services to indigents by a private lawyer appointment program. A list of 280 attorneys in the community has volunteered to represent indigent defendants. Last year the county paid $2.2 million for these lawyer services.
“I’ve had really good experiences with court-appointed lawyers,” Gallagher said. “The lawyers that appeared before my court are universally prepared. You can tell they’re not viewing this case any differently than a case where they are getting paid directly by a client.”
Gallagher admitted that there have been a few cases where he had issues with representation and he brought those to the attention of other judges.
“So word gets out if there is a problem.” Gallagher said.
Prosecutor Scott agreed that judges can play a role in making sure indigents are getting quality representation.
“I will tell you there have been times when I’ve been concerned about the representation that’s being given,” she said. “What I’ve done is brought that up to the judge. With everyone working together, there are ways to make sure that nothing is slipping through the cracks.”
Pierce explained Summit County is the only county in the state that has a 100 percent appointment system for felonies. For a lawyer to be appointed on a felony case, the attorney must have undergone training through the Akron Bar Association to stay current with case law.
“I would say the majority of attorneys do it because they believe that people who are indigent have the right to representation,” he said. “In terms of compensation, many lawyers will tell you it’s very low.”
According to Pierce, lawyers are paid $50 an hour for work inside the court and $40 an hour for work outside of court. In addition, there is a cap of $575 on a felony case. An attorney can spend 50 hours on a case and may not be able to bill any more than the $575 cap. By comparison the federal system allows attorneys to bill $120 an hour.
“In the 20 years that I’ve been doing it there has been one pay increase of $10 since I’ve been handling these types of cases.” Pierce said.
Several audience members took exception to the panel’s contention that indigent defendants receive the same level of representation as those who can afford to pay for legal counsel.
Representative Vernon Sykes, who was in the audience, was openly skeptical of the quality of representation for indigents.
“My experience on the state level and as well the local level with legal aid societies as well as public defenders offices is that their case loads are overwhelming,” he said. “Poor people do not get justice in the justice system. There is so much injustice and I am just so fed up with prosecutors as well as judges that allow so much injustice in the justice system. Mainly because folks who are poor can’t be strong advocates for their own interests.”
Pierce said his clients aren’t shy about advocating for themselves.
“If they feel that they are not meeting with their lawyer or getting good representation, most clients will say something to the judge,” he said. “People are not shy and they shouldn’t be. Their livelihood and liberty is at stake and I think the judges do a good job of policing the system.”
The panelists commented about how pleased they were to see such a strong interest in the discussion.
“It’s refreshing to see a group of people that aren’t lawyers who are interested in the system,” Pierce said “The fact that there are 50 or 60 of you here on your own time, I think that says a lot about our community. I would encourage any of you who want to get involved to come down and watch a case.”
Scott said she shared Pierce’s enthusiasm.
“Come to the courthouse, come watch a trial, come see a case,” she said. “Talk to the defense attorney, talk to the prosecutor. We’re all open and we’d be happy to answer your questions. But I think it’s great that we have the dialogue going on because this is a very important issue.”
The Summit County Progressive Democrats meet monthly to discuss and educate the public on current socio and political issues going on in the Summit County community. For more information visit summitprogdems.org