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Appellate indigent defense directors warn of ‘constitutional’ crisis as panel attorneys decline and caseloads rise
Summary
Project directors and appellate staff told the subcommittee that the statewide network of appellate indigent defense projects and volunteer panel attorneys has shrunk sharply while appeals and dependency matters have grown, producing long waits for appointed counsel and arguing for a larger funding increase than the administration proposed.
Appellate indigent defense project directors, a Court of Appeal justice and dozens of panel attorneys and public defenders told the Assembly panel the state faces a near‑term crisis in court‑appointed appellate representation.
Justice Bulwell Urie (representing the Judicial Council’s appellate indigent defense oversight committee) said panel attorney numbers have fallen from roughly 950 about a decade ago to about 600 today while courts of appeal handle nearly 10,000 appeals annually. “The need is desperate and quantifiable,” she said, and supported the Judicial Council’s requested $25 million to bolster project offices and raise hourly rates for panel attorneys.
Jennifer Peabody,…
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