Woman was told by a public defender to plead guilty to a felony that wasn’t even a felony

[Are_grits_groceries]

The Right to Counsel: Woman Becomes a Test Case

SHE was poor and in trouble. He was the public defender appointed to represent her.

She was Kimberly Hurell-Harring, a nobody in the courts, a nursing home worker and a mother of two who had done something stupid. He was Patrick E. Barber, a lawyer with a silver stubble of a beard, paid by the county and state to help make the criminal justice system as fair to the poor as it is to the rich.

At his urging, she pleaded guilty and went to jail for a felony that turned out not to be a felony at all. “It seemed like he was on the D.A.’s side,” she said later.

He said recently that he had done what he could: “They had her dead to rights.”

Usually, such a minor case would go unnoticed; a little test of the constitutional right to a lawyer, results unknown. Instead it has made Mr. Barber an emblem of the problems of the state’s ramshackle system of providing lawyers for indigent defendants. On Tuesday, New York’s highest court is to consider a class-action suit, filed by civil liberties lawyers in Ms. Hurell-Harring’s name, that seeks broad changes in the state’s frayed network of public defenders, who are routinely unmonitored and often overwhelmed. Her case, now being pored over by some of the state’s leading lawyers and judges, offers a window into the everyday corners of the legal system, where no one is usually watching.
<snip>
there is much more: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/21/nyregion/21lawyer.html?hp

What a system! No money, no justice.

[Solly Mack]

1. K&R

[amyrose2712]

2. I was just talking about this yesterday...

I was trying to explain to my mother that if you are poor and you get a public defender you DO NO have the same chances as if you can afford to pay for a lawyer. Sad. I went as far to say race plays a part i this too.

[Liberal_in_LA]

3. K&R!

[Liberal_in_LA]

4. I'm glad he's now facing a felony. kARMA

[Yellow Horse]

5. Your chances are even MORE shitty if you are sued...

...there's NO guarantee of ANY legal representation (good OR bad) to defend you in a civil case. If you are lucky you might get Legal Aid or one of the very limited pro bono programs to help you (but means-based programs don't help too many in the so-called middle class.) Otherwise you're pretty much on your own unless have a spare $5K-$10K (and up) just lying around waiting to be spent on lawsuit defense. Your life can get really screwed really fast.

A person is also pretty much screwed if they are damaged in some serious way and NEED to sue to recover, but their case is not a good juicy medical malpractice, liability, etc. that is likely to be accepted on a contingency fee.

You are SO right -- no money, no justice.

The above said, I personally know a couple of public defenders that do the criminal cases and the ones I know care a lot and do their very best even when defending some really obvious bad apples.

[treestar]

6. I'd have to hear a lot more facts before being ready to make judgments on this

What if he's right? Maybe she did commit a crime and there was evidence of it and the deal was to her favor.

That's more common than alleged injustices. Besides an adult can always stand their ground. You do not have to plead because your lawyer tells you to. If you don't like your lawyer's advice, fire them, don't act like you are a helpless victim of a lawyer. Get another one or represent yourself. There's a point where we have to take responsibility. This woman apparently handed it over to another and now blames them.

There is no court in this land where you are ever forced to plead guilty. If you are not guilty or not consciously deciding it's not worth fighting, then just don't plead guilty. Plead not guilty.

[Pithlet]

7. Did you even read the article? It was pretty clear she was screwed. The facts are all there.

You don't get to pick your public defenders. If you can't afford your own lawyer, you're screwed. Whether she committed the crime wasn't in question. She admitted to it. It's easy for people who can afford lawyers to say "don't be a victim" Laywers are supposed to be on our side and advise us of the law when they represent us, and when they fail us we ARE a victim of their malpractice. She was a victim, here. All the facts plainly point to that. It's no different than if a surgeon had botched a surgery. It was his duty to know the law and advise her correctly and defend her to his best ability. He didn't do that. Not her fault.

[notadmblnd]

8. Boy, could I tell you a story.

You are so ignorant of our legal system it isn't even funny. No, no one has to plead guilty but the process isn't black and white as your post would indicate. If you ever get tied up in the legal system, you're in for a rude awakening.

[Pithlet]

9. It is. She did the right thing with the information she had at the time.

She knew she'd done it. She has her lawyer basically telling her it's a felony. They've got you. Plead guilty and you won't get as much time. That's all the information she has, sitting in her cell. Just about anyone in her situation would have done the same thing. Except her lawyer was wrong. Another lawyer, who was on the ball, even pointed it out to him. Who can fathom why he told her otherwise? But the blame is squarely on him in this case. She had no choice but to trust that he knew what he was doing while she was sitting in that cell. This case is a prime example of inequality in our justice system.