Crime Committee Report e.indd - New York State Senate

I. 2009 Protecting The Right To Counsel - Case Caps
In Gideon v. Wainwright, 372 U.S. 335 (1963), the Supreme Court of the United States held
the right of an indigent defendant in a criminal trial to have the assistance of counsel is a
fundamental right essential to a fair trial and that a conviction without the assistance of counsel
violated the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution. As we entered the 2009
session, public defenders across the country complained that excessive caseloads violated an
individual’s right to effective counsel and due process of law. Indeed, in at least seven states,
government appointed lawyers either refused to take new cases or filed lawsuits to limit them.
In 1995, our Appellate Division, First Department, established guidelines that would amount
to public defenders handling roughly 70 cases at a time. However, in New York City, Legal Aid
Society lawyers handled over 277,000 cases in 2008 - an average of 103 cases a piece. 1
New York City is illustrative of problems experienced across the nation by court appointed
lawyers. New York’s former Chief Judge Judith Kaye led the charge for analysis and reform and
declared that New York’s indigent defense system was in a state of crisis. Caseloads were a major
focus of the New York State’s Commission on the Future of Indigent Defense Services (Kaye
Commission, 2006). The Commission’s Report warned that excessive caseloads posed a threat to
adequate representation and raised the possibility of wrongful convictions.
New York Legislature Acts Swiftly
In the Senate, led by Senator Ruth Hassell-Thompson, Senator John Sampson, Senator Eric Schneiderman
and Senator Eric Adams, historic legislation was signed into law that served as a first step to
stabilize the crisis in the criminal justice system. Under the new law, New York State’s chief administrative
judge is required to establish new caseload standards for public defenders by April 1, 2010. The
judiciary will then have four years to phase in the limits and ensure proper funding. The case cap law
is restricted to New York City. Admitting more needed to be done; Senator Ruth Hassell-Thompson
said that the budget deficit required lawmakers to make “strategic decisions” as opposed to sweeping
changes because of limited funding. While the law applies only to “case caps” in New York City, Senate
Leaders are supporting steps to expand the law statewide. In one of his several speeches on Indigent
Defense Reform, United States Attorney General Eric Holder complemented New York’s commitment
to case cap legislation and described the new law as a national example of “hard work”. 2
1 April 5, 2009, The New York Times, State Law to Cap Public Defender’s Caseloads,
2 Attorney General Eric Holder on Indigent Defense Reform, Commentary, Brennan Center for Justice, November 17, 2009. See also, Remarks by
Attorney General Eric Holder at the Department of Justice National Symposium on Indigent Defense: Looking Back, Looking Forward, 2000-
2010, U.S. Department of Justice, February 18, 2010.
Standing Committee on Crime Victims, Crime and Correction | 2009-2010 Report 1