Eye On Illinois: Lawmakers pushing to bolster public defender services

Eye On Illinois: Lawmakers pushing to bolster public defender services

In Gideon, Justice Hugo Black described the “noble ideal (of) fair trials before impartial tribunals in which every defendant stands equal before the law.”

Lawmakers moving forward on public defender reform - The Times Weekly

Bill in the Illinois Senate would create a statewide public defender’s officeWhen Elisabeth Pollock took over as the Champaign County public defender in 2022, one of her team’s attorneys was handling 500 cases by herself in a courtroom that should have been staffed by at least three public defenders.“That is a recipe for disaster because it’s not just taxing on the attorney, but it means that the client(s) who that attorney is representing are n…