New Orleans public defender's office says it will refuse new murder, rape cases due to budget cuts

[Louisiana1976]

Facing crushing felony caseloads and insufficient financing, the Orleans Parish public defenders will soon stop accepting new murder and rape cases, which are the most difficult ones to handle, the office's leader said Wednesday.

Chief public defender Derwyn Bunton's announcement comes on the heels of the City Council's decision to eliminate a $500,000 general fund appropriation for his office. The council earlier this year for the first time allocated the public defenders that money, but eliminated the allocation for 2010 as it trimmed criminal justice agency budgets to deal with a projected deficit next year.

Frank Neuner, chairman of the Louisiana Public Defender Board, said caseloads for the defense attorneys in Orleans Parish are already about twice the acceptable level set by his agency.

"The system will not work unless we have adequate funding, " he said, adding he is "disappointed" that the city could not find some general fund dollars for the public defenders. "If you continue to ignore the problem, you will continue to have a poorly functioning criminal justice system in Orleans Parish."

snip

http://www.nola.com/crime/index.ssf/2009/12/orleans_parish_public_defender.html

[Toucano]

1. And without counsel, the right to a fair trial goes...

down the toilet?

Sounds like another "American value" being chucked out the window.

[WinkyDink]

2. And yet America still allows people to become BILLIONaires while cities DIE. TAX THEM.

[FiveGoodMen]

3. This is all about the return to a world of masters and slaves

And the slaves-to-be are helping us down that path one teabag at a time.

[JDPriestly]

4. Feudalism, here we come.

[Behind the Aegis]

5. Hey, they've stopped taking drunks to the drunk tank!

It is not all drunks, but the police have to decide if there is room, if there is liability, if there was another crime, etc. Used to be get piss drunk, walk out on a tab and get caught pissing on Royal street, you're ass went to jail...not any more...JUST DON'T SHOW YOUR BOOBIES!