Lawyer: Public defender system needs to be fixed

​INDIANAPOLIS --  A recently issued report evaluating the statewide public defender system  found it "woefully inadequate and in many respects, unconstitutional," according to a press release from the office of Indianapolis lawyer Michael Sutherlin today.

A Petition for Rule Making was filed today, asking the Supreme Court to address deficiencies of the public defender system

Sutherlin believes the situation needs to be addressed by all three branches of state government regarding issues involving funding, oversight and supervision of public defender services to indigent arrestees, as cited in the Sixth Amendment Center report.  

Advocates for changes allege the system is rigged and should be designed to comply with the constitutional mandates of a landmark U.S. Supreme Court case.  Gideon v. Wainwright unanimously ruled in 1963 that states are required under the Sixth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution to provide counsel in criminal cases to represent defendants who are unable to afford to pay their own attorneys, according to a uscourts.gov article.

Sutherlin notes that many public defenders across  92 counties are burdened by unmanageable caseloads. Those responsible for providing indigent detainees -- the poorest individuals accused of crimes -- adequate representation under the Sixth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution have failed in their responsibilities, Sutherlin said.

"Prosecutors enjoy an imbalance of power. This has resulted in many people languishing in jail until they accept a plea bargain," Sutherlin states, adding, "It is an obvious deficiency when you see the allocation of resources at the prosecutor's office, to the state judges, and you look at the mere pittance that is offered to the public defender system.

Sutherlin believes reform is imperative. He notes changes requiring a series of rules, procedures and standards the public defender system to ensure adequate and constitutional representation under the Sixth Amendment to individuals who depend on public defenders to represent them in their court cases. The Petition is supported by the report The Right to Counsel in Indiana.

​He asserts that the problem can be solved with cooperation and consideration of those in authority, including:

• The Supreme Court, with its rule making authority, is respectfully invited to address the Sixth Amendment Report.  
• The legislature, which funds the elected prosecutor and funds all the judicial positions throughout the state, has failed to provide comparable funding for public defenders who are the countervailing force for ensuring that an individual's freedom is not mistakenly taken away. At stake are their associations with family, community, and their ability to keep their jobs.

A press conference is scheduled for tomorrow morning at the statehouse in Indianapolis to address the concerns.