Evaluating Investigator Use by Defense Counsel in Texas: A Report for the Texas Indigent Defense Commission

• NCJ Number: 308237
• Date Published: April 2023
• Length: 101 pages
• Grant Number(s): 2019-YA-BX-K001
• Agencies: BJA-Sponsored
• Publication Type: Research (Applied/Empirical)

Annotation

This study on behalf of the Texas Indigent Defense Commission (TIDC) assesses defense counsel’s use of investigators in Texas.

Abstract

This report studies court-appointed defense teams’ utilization of investigators and concludes that the underutilization of defense investigators in indigent defense cases is a widespread problem. Although there is no singular cause or singular solution, a number of system strengths can serve as a foundation for lasting improvements. The recommendations in this report are intended to be a starting point. Ongoing assessment, evaluation, and refinement will be critical to making sure that changes are implemented and prove effective. The Texas Indigent Defense Commission (TIDC) discovered that 54% of Texas counties reported no expenditures for defense investigation in 2020. The research team, co-led by NACDL and RTI, sought to better understand these findings by surveying both investigators and defense attorneys and by interviewing judges in the geographic areas identified by the data. Most of the jurisdictions reporting no or low expenditures for investigators were small, rural counties. TIDC applied to the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) for training and technical assistance (TTA) in February 2021 to examine the utilization practices of investigators in court-appointed cases. A team was assembled to provide the requested TTA. The team consisted of two main groups: those from the BJA-funded Justice for All grant project (JFA team) and those working and practicing in the state of Texas (Texas team). The JFA team included representatives from all four of the JFA grant principals: the Association of Prosecuting Attorneys, the National Center for State Courts (NCSC), the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL), and RTI International. the underutilization of defense investigators in indigent defense cases is a widespread problem. Although there is no singular cause or singular solution, a number of system strengths can serve as a foundation for lasting improvements.