To be a public defender is to constantly answer the same question over and over again, whether it is your mother asking or the person cutting your hair: How can you defend someone you know committed a violent crime? Many people cannot understand how public defenders do what they do, because they are outraged by criminal acts and because they have stereotypical views of the type of people who commit crime. You should think about your answer to this question, both to see if this line of work is right for you and to start preparing now for the cocktail party conversations to come in your future.
One important thing to recognize when you think about answering this question is that public defender work is not all about the innocent. Many law students are excited when they think about exonerating an innocent person, but that is only a small fraction of public defender work. As a defender, you will represent many people who have committed crimes and you will free many of them on what society might deem to be legal technicalities.
You have to not only be okay with that; you have to embrace it. Defenders will have different answers to the question of how they represent the guilty.
Some thrive on the work and believe that the system is so stacked against the poor that they are willing to do whatever it takes to even the playing field. They view themselves as equalizing a power imbalance in society. Others relate to the human side of their jobs and recognize that good people can sometimes do bad things and that people are often affected by the circumstances in their lives.
If we were all defined by our worst acts, think about how you would be judged. Still others focus on the draconian nature of criminal penalties and the inhumane prison conditions. Even if someone has committed a crime, it does not mean that society should lock her up and throw away the key.
Some law students feel drawn to the defense side, but find themselves wondering if they could represent one kind of alleged criminal. If you are one of these students, you have to do some soul searching and some real investigation to figure out if this is the right job for you.
Spend a summer or a part of a semester volunteering in the public defender office. When you are there, seek out the attorneys who work on the rape or child abuse cases. Talk to them. Work on one of the cases. You might have less trouble than you initially thought. It might turn out that you actually want to work on those cases. Alternatively, you might realize that you were right. In the end, if you are a person who is willing to confront and challenge the system, enjoys direct client contact, and wants to fight for the underprivileged regardless of whether they have done something wrong, this might be your calling.
It is a job that comes with many rewards. For more information about why people love being a public defender, current University of Michigan Law Students can read stories from MDefenders alumni.
Toggle navigation. Court appointed lawyers are also actively practicing lawyers and usually very experienced in the type of cases in which they accept court appointments. Some counties do not have a Public Defender's Office. In those counties, judges appoint lawyers who regularly practice in their courts or are on a court-appointed list indicating they will accept a court apopinted case.
Those lawyers are paid from the court fund. Sometimes it would be impossible for the Public Defender's Office to fairly represent an individual's witness against one of their clients. Sometimes the judge appoints a publice defender for one parent, when both parents are charged with child abuse or neglect.
The Public Defenders Office would have a 'conflict of interest' if they represented both parents. In those cases, a judge will appoint a private attorney, called a conflict attorney, instead of a public defender for the other parent or for the child.
Pauper's Affidavit. Criminal Law Problems. Live Chat click here. Utility payment help, rent payment help, food pantries and more Dial from any phone.
L aw H elp. Hide Your Visit. One attorney may handle the initial phase of bail and arraignment, another attorney may represent the defendant during plea bargaining, and still another attorney may represent the defendant in a trial if the case reaches that stage.
Also, a defendant may feel concerned that each attorney will not be familiar with the case file. An attorney who handles a trial thus will be likely to have handled many trials before. A defendant may ask the court to replace their court-appointed attorney with a different one, but they do not have an absolute right to a replacement.
If a defendant is having problems with their lawyer, they may have a better chance of replacement if their current lawyer agrees to a substitution. Some defendants are reluctant to ask for a public defender because they see a public defender as part of the system.
They may worry that they share the perspective of law enforcement, prosecutors, and judges. Public defenders often do develop close and respectful relationships with certain judges and prosecutors whom they see regularly. Private attorneys may build these relationships as well. However, this does not mean that they no longer do their job effectively. Being familiar with how the system works often can help them represent a client because they will know what to expect from certain individuals on the other side.
Both sides understand the importance of zealous representation, and they rarely allow their mutual respect to get in the way of their professional duties. Last reviewed October Criminal Law Contents.
Criminal Law. Aggravating and Mitigating Factors in Criminal Sentencing.
0コメント