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Orr & Lefstein on Public Defenders for Harris County

By Steve Hall

"County can save money with public defenders," is the OpEd by Cynthia Hujar Orr and Norman Lefstein in today's Houston Chronicle.  Orr is an attorney in San Antonio and President of the National Association of Defense Lawyers.  Lefstein is the Dean Emeritus of the Indiana University School of Law - Indianapolis.  Lefstein co-authored the Constitution Project's 2009 report, Justice Denied, America's Continuing Neglect of Our Constitutional Right to Counsel, noted here.  An extended excerpt from the OpEd:In 1963, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously decided Gideon v. Wainwright, ruling that indigent defendants have a ?fundamental right? to counsel to ensure a fair trial. More than 46 years later, Gideon's promise of fair trials and a constitutional right to counsel has not been fulfilled in states and localities around the country...continue to full post

Full post as published by StandDown Texas Project on September 25, 2009 (boomark / email).