A situation that has long been grossly unfair is now headed toward a…
By The Times-Ledger
The public defenders have become the poor stepchild of the criminal justice system. No one cares much about the people they represent and, it would seem, no one cares much about them.
A situation that has long been grossly unfair is now headed toward a crisis. The public defenders that represent the indigent in the Supreme, Criminal and Family courts are paid a mere $40 an hour for in-court work and $25 an hour for out-of-court work. The public defenders have not been given a pay raise in 15 years. If they threaten to walk, nobody cares.
The city is facing a critical shortage of public defenders. The work just isn't worth the money. There was a time when people fresh out of law school saw service as a public defender as a first step in a legal career. Lawyers who sign on with large firms get paid many times more but they could work for years without ever entering a courtroom. Being a public defender was great training, especially for a lawyer hoping to practice criminal or family law. But in 2001, the $25 an hour won't even pay off the student loan.
The problem is that there is precious little sympathy for impoverished adults and juveniles with legal problems. The Constitution may guarantee every citizen the right to a competent legal defense, but there is no law demanding that public defenders be paid a fair wage.
A recently published report estimates that it would cost the state about $110 million to raise the hourly rate from $40 to $75 for in-court work. Since their counterparts in the corporate world are paid $200 to $500 an hour. This raise is not just fair; it is long overdue.
The law demands that juveniles in particular be tried in a timely manner. If a judge cannot find a public defender, he or she may be compelled to set free juveniles who have committed serious crimes.
This is a problem that Albany must address quickly. Many of the legislators are also attorneys. None of them would write a contract or appear in court for $40 an hour. To make certain that our justice system can fulfill the mandate of providing a fair trial to even the poorest of the poor, the state must rectify this situation.
Teacher bashing
More than any letter writer in recent memory, David Kent has struck a nerve with his attacks on the teachers in the city's public school system. We would like to add our voice to those who have said that Mr. Kent is wrong.
Yes, we support the concept of vouchers and charter schools because we believe that parents should have greater choice and because we believe that the competition will create better public schools. But Mr. Kent goes too far when he questions the commitment and hard work of those teachers who report every morning to our public schools. These are, for the most part, dedicated men and women who work under very difficult circumstances for far less pay than they deserve.
To say that these teachers work a short day is in itself shortsighted. Most teachers are at school long before the children arrive and remain there until long after they leave. At night they have lessons to plan and papers to grade.
Sadly, the current system makes it hard to keep the majority of dedicated teachers while eliminating the dead wood.
Last week were reminded of the dangers facing public school teachers in the inner city. At Springfield Gardens High School, an angry 18-year-old girl allegedly slammed a door on a teacher's hand. The teacher lost part of a finger. This is dangerous work, Mr. Kent. The people who do it deserve your support.
