The state of Mississippi delegates to its local governments all responsibility for funding and administering indigent defense service in adult criminal trials, except for some case types where the state provides services. The state has no commission providing oversight of indigent defense services.
Mississippi public defender system varies widely by county, court plans show
In 1963, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Gideon v. Wainwright that the Sixth Amendment requires states to provide lawyers to criminal defendants who cannot afford one. Mississippi delegates that responsibility to counties, a system civil rights attorneys say is inconsistent and ineffective.
Adequate indigent defense should be a top priority
This past weekend, I published a story for The Commonwealth assessing Mississippi’s 23 circuit court districts’ indigent defense plans — that is how each of those courts provides lawyers to indigent, or poor, criminal defendants charged with a felony who can’t afford their own counsel.
Mississippi public defenders could curb incarcerations - Mississippi Today
What Mississippi needs is a state-level public defender mandate establishing clear, enforceable standards that apply in every jurisdiction: standards for compensation and expenses, for workload, for when counsel first meets a client, for continuity of representation through all stages of a case.
Mississippi Makes Move Toward State-Funded Public Defenders
Indigent felony defendants in many counties have lacked court-appointed lawyers before indictment, even while they sat in jails for weeks or months.
Why Mississippi Courts Must Produce Public Defense Plans
The state Supreme Court wants to know how local courts provide lawyers, if any, to poor people after their arrest.
This Mississippi Court Appoints Lawyers for Just 1 in 5 Defendants Before Indictment
Mississippi is known as one of the worst states for public defense. In one lower court, most defendants went without any lawyer before indictment.
Hinds public defender: Office needs additional funding to avert constitutional crisis - Mississippi Today
Hinds County public defender says supervisors should approve a funding increase to honor the constitutional promise that justice does not depend on wealth.
Why Mississippi Nixed Fixing Its Broken Public Defense System
With its refusal to impose oversight or consistent standards in local defense, Mississippi risks falling further behind the rest of the U.S., critics say.
Mississippi “Data Center Giveaway Law” Leaves Residents in the Dark and Could Already Be Costing Utility Customers ~$11/mo.
A state law is failing to protect households from potentially rising power bills. How lawmakers and utilities can fix this.
Mississippi Courts Won’t Say How They Provide Lawyers for Poor Clients
Six years ago, the Mississippi Supreme Court told judges around the state to file plans showing how they meet their obligations to poor defendants. So far, only one has.
Defense, like prosecution, should be funded by state
When America’s Founding Fathers were debating the Constitution, they realized that it didn’t do enough to protect individual rights.
We Will Shoot Back: Armed Resistance in the Mississippi…
"Ranging from Reconstruction to the Black Power period,…
Former SPLC official charged in Justice Department's broader criminal case against group
A former Southern Poverty Law Center official has been charged in the Department of Justice’s broader criminal case against the Alabama-based civil rights group, a frequent target of conservative critics who claim the nonprofit is politically biased.
Advocates urge for higher pay for public defenders - Mississippi Today
On Tuesday, members of Defend Mississippi – a statewide group receiving support from national criminal justice advocates – gathered to make the case for why the Hinds County Board of Supervisors should appropriate $350,000 to the Hinds County Public Defender’s Office.
Many Mississippi Courts Unprepared to Give All Poor Defendants Lawyers
A rule requiring poor criminal defendants to have a lawyer throughout the criminal process took effect Saturday.
The ‘Antifa Scare’ Goes on Trial in North Texas
As nine of the "Prairieland 19" face their days in court, the broader constitutional rights of left-wing activists may hang in the balance.
