Public Defense

    The Standing Committee on Legal Aid and Indigent Defense (SCLAID) is working to improve public defense systems nationwide.

    Katrina 15th Anniversary Programs

    From Katrina to COVID

    To mark the 15th Anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, the ABA Standing Committee on Legal Aid and Indigent Defense (SCLAID) together with the Deason Criminal Justice Reform Center at SMU Law School, the ABA Criminal Justice Section and the ABA Section on Civil Rights and Social Justice present webinars on the impact of crisis on two key components of the criminal justice system: Jails and Prisons, and Public Defense. The programs will consider what happens to people trapped in the criminal justice system during times of extreme systemic stress and whether or not such times of crisis can be catalysts for reform. Please join us for these free (non-CLE) programs.

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    New Report! - Released July 24, 2020

    The Indiana Public Defender Commission Report

    An Analysis of the Indiana Public Defense System And Attorney Workload Standards

    The Indiana Public Defender Commission (“Commission”) separately engaged the American Bar Association Standing Committee on Legal Aid and Indigent Defense (“ABA SCLAID”) and Crowe LLP (“Crowe”) to collaboratively conduct the Indiana Project, an analysis of public defense workloads, and produce a final report.

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    COVID-19 Webinars

    COVID-19 Resources

    The ABA Standing Committee on Legal Aid and Indigent Defense (SCLAID) has launched a web page that consolidates resources from across the country to assist the access to justice community in addressing the many challenges resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.

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    ABA Public Defense Summit

    Moving Online!

    Join us for the 2020 ABA Public Defense Summit: Misdemeanor Public Defense: Defending in the Wild West. Moving online! More information coming soon!

    Exemplary Defense: A Study of Three Groundbreaking Projects in Public Defense

    Exemplary Defense: A Study of Three Groundbreaking Projects in Public Defense
    The Rhode Island Project: A Study of the Rhode Island Public Defender System and Attorney Workload Standards

    The Rhode Island Project: A Study of the Rhode Island Public Defender System and Attorney Workload Standards
    The Colorado Project: A Study of the Colorado Public Defender System and Attorney Workload Standards

    The Colorado Project: A Study of the Colorado Public Defender System and Attorney Workload Standards
    Reports and Publications

    View all Reports and Publications

    Public Education Events

    Explore upcoming and past events on topics related to public defense.

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    Public Defense News

    News and news archives available at indigentdefense.org. Email Malia Brink at malia.brink@americanbar.org with news, jobs, events, or subscription requests.

    Here is the public defense news Sept 10-16, 2020

    Report:

    DPIC: Enduring Injustice: The Persistence of Racial Discrimination in the U.S. Death Penalty

    BJS: Criminal Victimization, 2019

    Brennan Center: The Impact of Video Proceedings on Fairness and Access to Justice in Court

    Brennan Center: Principles for Continued Use of Remote Court Proceedings

    CJPP – Harvard:  Racial Disparities in the Massachusetts Criminal System

    National:

    Far from being beyond saving, prison youth deserve every opportunity for meaningful rehabilitation

    DPIC release report placing death penalty in historical context as a “descendant of slavery, lynching, and segregation”

    Report: Death penalty cases show history of racial disparity

    He was wrongfully imprisoned for 8 years. Now he’s a defense lawyer

    Links

    Find additional indigent criminal defense resources, including links to related ABA groups and committees, publications and standards, and other organizations devoted to improving indigent criminal defense systems.

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