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Gideon Turns 60: Nueces County, TX

In “Sixty Years After Gideon: Indigent Defense in Nueces County,” Wren investigated indigent defense in Nueces County, Texas.

The report found major problems with the County’s appointed attorney system. Court appointed lawyers are paid meager flat fees for cases at a rate so low lawyers cannot possibly do meaningful work for their clients.

Wren recommends first raising the attorney rates so that attorneys can bill by the hour. Nueces County should also establish a Managed Appointed Counsel system that is independent from the judiciary, capable of closely monitoring attorney performance by collecting and analyzing data that measures how attorneys are representing their clients, including whether they are going to the jail, investigating their cases, and filing motions. And of course, Nueces County should continue to support and expand the Public Defender.

Read the report here, or click below to download a PDF.

Sixty Years After Gideon

Image: By Larry D. Moore, CC BY 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=33113068