One county in Texas is introducing the concept of “defense vouchers.” What are defense vouchers? They are similar to that of government school vouchers where a parent can use the voucher to send their child to a grade school. In this case, if someone is arrested for a crime, and they are too poor to hire their own lawyer, then instead of being assigned a public defender by the court, they will receive a defense voucher in which they are able to choose their own lawyer using this voucher.
History of Public Defenders
In 1963, Gideon v. Wainwright, the Supreme Court ruled that those accused of serious crimes and who couldn’t afford their own defense lawyer to defend them in court, were to be assigned a lawyer which was paid for by the government. There was no indication of how the lawyer was to be assigned, what kind of payment the lawyer would receive, or how were the lawyers to be monitored to ensure they were defending their clients the same way and with the same determination they would a paying client.
Comal County, Texas Defense Vouchers
In this County in Texas, the city council is going to try this criminal defense voucher system. Similar to the school vouchers that many states offer, the point is to put the decision and the money in the hands of the defendants. In theory, if a particular criminal defense law office is successful with their criminal cases, the accused will seek these lawyers, thus creating additional business for these particular law offices. It is an incentive to defend all clients with equal determination and vigor. Comal County believes that the defense vouchers will improve the quality of legal representation for the poor. According to a paper by the Cato Institute, better legal representation will produce three benefits to a community:
- Reduce the likelihood of mistakes such as innocent persons being wrongfully convicted
- Minimize adverse consequences to innocent persons who would have previously been acquitted under current systems of indigent systems, meaning they will be released from custody sooner and with less disruption to their lives.
- Bring more complete information to the sentencing phase of the criminal justice system, making it more likely that just punishment will be imposed on those who are found guilty of their crimes.
My Thoughts on the Defense Voucher System
It is my opinion that a public defender voucher system is a good thing for Louisiana. I wrote about Paying for Public Defense in an earlier blog post. Not only does the client have the choice to hire a lawyer who they believe will represent them best, but the lawyer has the option to turn down a voucher. They also appear to be safeguards that will protect criminal defendants from hiring lawyers who are not capable of handling their case through state-level approval for payment on a voucher. There are three reasons why I believe that the defense vouchers are positive: it reduces the financial burden on an overburdened, state funded public defender program (like Louisiana); it encourages clients to seek out private lawyers instead of expect the public defender appointed by the court, and it gives more competition to private lawyers with the public defender’s office. This would be beneficial to cities like New Orleans where a public defender is assigned to a client regardless of whether you request one or not. People falsely believe that just because you were arrested you are entitled to a public defender, however the law provides that you are only able to get a court appointed lawyer if you are indigent. Although Louisiana does not have a voucher program to pay for a lawyer of your choice, you are still entitled to a lawyer you can trust and rely on to handle your criminal case in New Orleans.
If you, or someone you know needs the assistance of a skilled criminal defense attorney, contact Crescent City Law by phone at (504) 264-9492 or email.
