NCJ Number
110724
Journal
Student Lawyer Volume: 16 Issue: 5 Dated: (January 1988) Pages: 15-19
Date Published
1988
Length
5 pages
Annotation
Unless the courts begin offering greater compensation for attorneys representing indigent death row inmates, it may be impossible to find enough attorneys to represent the growing number of such inmates.
Abstract
Some efforts are being made. Florida has launched the first and only publicly financed program in the Nation to guarantee full legal representation for the State's death row inmates at every level of their appeals. In most cases, little or no compensation is provided to attorneys representing capital defendants in postconviction appeals. This task has been largely left to a few struggling legal defense groups and the attorneys they recruit to work pro bono. It is becoming increasingly difficult, however, to recruit pro bono attorneys because of the time, cost, and emotional drain involved in such cases. Many attorneys and legal firms have taken serious losses in representing death row inmates on appeal. The American Bar Association has placed articles and advertisements in numerous publications to recruit attorneys for appeals in capital cases. Just over 75 attorneys have volunteered, not enough to fill the need. The American Bar Association is pushing for legislative reforms that would guarantee reasonable compensation for counsel at every stage of the postconviction death penalty appeals process. This is necessary if the problem is to be resolved.