Louisiana Public Defender Board
Recent News About Louisiana Public Defender Board
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State's 'under-resourced public defenders' exacerbates over-detention crisis in jails, says attorney
A number of civil rights lawsuits have been filed against the Louisiana Department of Corrections and various sheriff's offices, alleging that prisons in the state of Louisiana routinely keep inmates after their release dates. -
Law professor backs judge's claim that poor funding is no excuse for violation of constitutional rights
A Louisiana judge recently allowed a class-action lawsuit to advance on behalf of poverty-stricken Louisianans, claiming that the state does impoverished defendants a disservice and violates their constitutional rights through failing to properly represent them -
Southern Poverty Law Center blames Louisiana for public defense insufficiencies
Meredith Angelson, a senior staff attorney for the Southern Poverty Law Center [SPLC], blames the state for issues with Louisiana’s public defender system’s handling of poor defendants. -
Class-action suit alleges dearth of public defenders in Louisiana
BATON ROUGE — A statewide, class-action lawsuit filed with the 19th District Court alleges that Louisiana’s poor lack access to effective legal representation when faced with criminal charges. -
Judge dismisses ACLU lawsuit aimed at boosting Louisiana's indigent defense funding
BATON ROUGE — A federal judge in Baton Rouge has dismissed a lawsuit brought against the office by the American Civil Liberties Union that attempted to force the state to change budget inadequacies for those who can’t afford lawyers under court order. -
Louisiana indigent defendants’ suit filed by ACLU dismissed by federal judge
NEW ORLEANS – A federal judge has said that Louisiana’s system of funding lawyers for indigent defendants is in crisis, but he dismissed a lawsuit asking the state to find a remedy. -
As inmates languish in jail without public defenders, lawsuits start rolling in
NEW ORLEANS –Two New Orleans attorneys recently filed lawsuits on behalf of four inmates who have been incarcerated for months following their arrests without representation, victims of a budget crisis that has resulted in a lengthy waiting list for public defender services. -
Judge's order to release inmates highlights budget issues in New Orleans
NEW ORLEANS – A Orleans Parish judge has ordered the release of seven indigent defendants because the public defenders' office can’t afford to defend them. -
DA association backs bill aimed at troubled Louisiana Public Defender Board
BATON ROUGE – The Louisiana Public Defender Board is under fire for how it funds defendant representation in capital murder cases and is the target of a state House Bill that would winnow its membership as the state's public defenders crisis continues to deepen. -
Orleans Parish public defenders' office sued by ACLU over refusal of cases
BATON ROUGE – The cash-starved Orleans Parish public defenders' office is being sued after allegedly placing poor people connected to crimes on a "waiting list" and leaving them without access to lawyers. -
Class action claims Louisiana public defender wrongfully collects $35 fee
Seicshnaydre On behalf of criminal defendants, the Tulane Law Clinic has filed a class action against the Louisiana Public Defender Board for violating the rights of criminal defendants by collecting a $35 statutory fee.