Facts on Michigan's Failing Public Defense System…

                    Facts on Michigan's Failing Public Defense System
The Constitution requires that states provide effective legal counsel to defendants who cannot afford
an attorney. After a year-long extensive study of 10 representative counties across Michigan, the
National Legal Aid and Defender Association, in partnership with the Michigan State Bar
Association, has found that the state of Michigan is failing its citizens by forcing counties to fund the
public defender system and neglecting to oversee public defense work in those counties.1

Troubling Findings

         Michigan ranks 44th of the 50 states in public defense funding. By spending only $7.35 per
         capita, or 38 percent less than the national average, Michigan ranks lower than Alabama
         (34th). (Page iii of the report) This can be contrasted with spending on corrections, in which
         Michigan is one of the highest ranking states and expects to spend well over $2 billion this
         year.

         Michigan is one of only seven states that place the entire burden for funding trial-level public
         defense on its counties as an unfunded mandate, ignoring the constitutional requirements
         identified by the United States Supreme Court. (Page 5)

         Counties across the state fail to meet the vast majority of the American Bar Association's
         Ten Principles of a Public Defense Delivery System -- the minimum criteria for effective
         representation as guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution. For example, Jackson County judges
         routinely control the awarding of public defender contracts, which violates the first ABA
         principle -- Independence -- and creates clear conflicts of interest. As the report finds, all
         too often a public defender's financial success hinges on making the judge happy. (Jackson
         County Case Study, Pages 35-56)

         Throughout Michigan, speed is emphasized over quality and due process to such an extent
         that in Ottawa County, the days on which the district court arraigns people -- typically
         without any legal representation whatsoever -- are referred to as "McJustice Days" in the
         criminal justice community. (Page 15)

Broken System

"The counties most in need of indigent defense services are often the ones that least can afford to
pay for it." (Page 6)

Inadequate Funding
      While Gideon v. Wainwright obliges states to provide constitutionally adequate public
      defense, Michigan deflects the burden to individual counties. This creates wide disparities in
      the quality of defense from county to county. (Pages 6, 22, 45)

1
 The report was conducted at the request of the Michigan Legislature under a concurrent resolution (SCR 39 of 2006). The counties were
selected by an advisory panel. For a complete methodology of the 10 counties chosen, please see the Executive Summary (Page i) at
http://www.nlada.org/Defender/defender_evaluation/michigan_evaluation.
       Economic hardship and depressed property values mean many counties cannot adequately
       invest in the social services needed to reverse or slow rising crime rates. The result is that
       public defender offices in cash-strapped counties are often under-resourced, which in turn
       increases the opportunity for mistaken convictions and waste of taxpayer dollars. (Page 6)

       Counties grappling with budget problems are forced to look for the cheapest possible options
       for providing indigent defense -- with no statewide oversight or standards to ensure justice is
       equal across county lines.

Patchwork Solutions
      Financially strained counties often choose low-bid, flat-fee contracts, which guarantee
      lawyers will not have the resources necessary to prepare a full and fair defense. Forty-one of
      Michigan's 83 counties currently use a contract system, deemed by national legal experts to
      be one of the worst solutions because of the ethical conflicts that it creates. (Page 9)

       In Detroit, five part-time public defenders spend an average of 32 minutes per case, handling
       2,400 to 2,800 cases each, while the national standard for a full-time public defender is only
       400 cases per year. (Page 23)

       Some Michigan residents may never even have the opportunity to speak to an attorney if
       their case is heard in district court. District courts throughout the state often fail to provide
       counsel in misdemeanor cases. In other instances, the courts offer to let people get out of jail
       for time served if they agree not to ask for an attorney. Some courts have threatened to
       charge residents large amounts of money for access to a public defender. (Page 15)

Citizen Toll

"Despite the overall dedication and professionalism of the hundreds of thousands of citizens
employed in the police and prosecution functions in Michigan, it is simply impossible to always arrest
and prosecute the right defendant for the right crime and mete out accurate and just sentences in
every instance." (Page vi)

       Every Resident Impacted ­ The ripple effect of this broken criminal justice system is far-
       reaching and extends to every Michigan resident. By failing to meet its responsibility for
       funding and overseeing a vital part of the justice system, the state is wasting taxpayer money
       and endangering public safety.

       Fiscally Irresponsible ­ Taxpayers shell out millions of dollars to foot the bill for delays,
       mistakes and lawsuits that result from the broken public defense system. One such lawsuit
       forced the state and Wayne County to pay out more than $4 million to a man who had been
       wrongfully convicted.

       Public Safety at Risk ­ In recent years, several wrongful convictions have come to light,
       exposing the state's failure to provide for a functioning justice system that keeps
       communities safe. The impact extends far beyond the defendant: when an innocent person is
       imprisoned, the real criminal remains on the streets. (For a case study, see the story of Eddie
       Joe Lloyd, an innocent Michigan man imprisoned for 17 years. Page 14)
Report Recommendations

There is no single "cookie-cutter" indigent defense model that guarantees adequate representation.
However, at a minimum, a fully functioning public defense system must be adequately funded by the
state and meet all of the ABA's Ten Principles.

NLADA recommends that policymakers immediately convene legislative hearings to address current
funding and oversight failures in order to begin to create a fair and efficient system that protects the
welfare of all Michigan residents.