public defenders

St. Louis Public Defenders To Decline Some Cases

Maria Altman — Thu, 04 Oct 2012 23:50:20 +0000

Several public defender offices around the state have notified courts they will not be taking cases beyond their maximum caseload this month.

The 18 offices around Missouri include ones in St. Louis, St. Charles, Jefferson City and Springfield.

In St. Louis instead of turning away all cases public defenders met with the 22^ndCircuit Court and the Circuit Attorney’s office to craft a different solution.

Director Mary Fox says the circuit’s presiding judge then issued an administrative order that the public defender’s St.

Public Defenders Can Now Refuse Cases – But Seek Long-Term Solution

Maria Altman — Wed, 26 Sep 2012 11:26:13 +0000

Missouri’s public defenders won a big case before the state supreme court this summer.

Roundup: Mo. Supreme Court rules on smorgasbord of issues

Kelsey Proud — Tue, 31 Jul 2012 23:55:27 +0000

Well, the Missouri Supreme Court has certainly done its part for the news cycle today with an array of decisions.

Here's a quick taste of what happened, and links to our separate stories so you can dig in to find out more about each.

Missouri Supreme Court rules on public defender case

Maria Altman — Tue, 31 Jul 2012 23:07:24 +0000

The Missouri Supreme Court has ruled that a judge should not have appointed a public defender to a client after the public defenders alerted the courts they had too many cases.

The court handed down the 4-3 decision Tuesday.

The case goes back to July 2010 when a Christian County judge appointed a public defender despite their "limited availability" status.

Christian County prosecutor Amy Fite says it’s hard on victims and defendants when cases are held up.

Missouri public defenders take problem of high caseloads to high court

Maria Altman — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 12:30:19 +0000

Listen to the oral arguments before the Missouri Supreme Court in this case

Missouri’s public defenders have argued for years that they have too many cases.

So in 2010 the public defender commission put a plan in place that allowed each of its districts to stop taking cases when its attorneys became too busy.