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Appellate indigent‑defense leaders warn of staffing crisis, urge larger pay increase than governor proposed
Summary
Project directors and panel attorneys told the subcommittee that appellate projects have lost hundreds of panel attorneys over the past decade, creating appointment delays and client overdetention; they urged a larger increase than the governor’s $10 hourly raise.
Appellate project directors, panel attorneys and Judicial Council representatives told the subcommittee the system that assigns appellate counsel for indigent defendants is in crisis and that proposed increases in compensation must be larger to recruit and retain attorneys.
Justice Stacy Bulwer Urie, chair of the Appellate Indigent Defense Oversight Advisory Committee, described shrinking attorney panels: ‘‘Ten years ago there were almost 950 panel attorneys and today around 600 remain,’’ she said. ‘‘Without the budget allocation identified by the governor, there will be even fewer attorneys who are able to ensure meaningful challenges and implementation of the laws passed by California’s legislature.’’
What the governor proposed and what advocates seek: The governor’s budget includes an ongoing $6.3 million request (described in testimony) to increase panel pay by $10 an hour and to increase project office contracts by about 7%. Justice Bulwer Urie and multiple project directors and panel attorneys urged a higher adjustment — project offices and advocates originally requested larger increases (advocates cited an earlier $25 million–$40 million ask) to reach parity with other jurisdictions and federal pay levels.
Public testimony: Dozens of public commenters — staff and executive directors from appellate projects, panel attorneys and former project staff — described appointment delays, rising rejection rates when projects offer cases to the panel, and a growing backlog of cases awaiting counsel. Project directors said some projects now have hundreds of unassigned cases; one project reported 328 cases waiting this morning in the third and fifth districts combined. Panel attorneys said federal and local pay frequently outpaces state rates and that the current proposal does not restore purchasing power after decades of relatively small raises.
Consequences described: Witnesses linked delayed appointments to overdetention, prolonged case resolution, and harder resettlement for defendants; they urged the committee to consider higher investments to prevent longer detention costs and to protect appellate review that implements recent sentencing reforms.
Ending: Committee members thanked witnesses and noted the difficulty of budget tradeoffs. The request will be considered in budget deliberations; no formal action occurred at the hearing.
