Orleans Public Defenders

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COVID-19 Response: Letter to Criminal Justice Officials

: News; 16 March 2020

In response to the impending threats of COVID-19, we issued the following call to criminal justice officials to ensure the health and safety of our clients, their communities, and our staff.

Attachments:
Letter to Sheriff Gusman re COVID-19 (3-11-20).pdf

OPD & dba Host Concert for Indigent Defense, March 18

: News; 16 March 2020

UPDATE: Due to the ongoing threats of COVID-19, this event may not happen. Please watch the d.b.a. social media pages for show and venue updates.

OPD, d.b.a. and legendary New Orleans blues musician Walter Wolfman Washington will join forces to present New Orleans’ Concerts for Indigent Defense March 18, 2020 at 10 pm at d.b.a. on Frenchman Street. The event celebrates Gideon Day, the anniversary of the Sixth Amendment Right to Counsel and OPD’s continued fight for dignity, justice and hope in our criminal legal system.

This constitutional right to Counsel was established by the U.S. Supreme Court on March 18, 1963, yet more than half a century later, the Right to Counsel remains threatened by chronic underfunding and disregard for the critical role of public defense. The New Orleans show joins other shows in Denver and New York City.

“We consider New Orleans the core location for the nationwide reach of Concerts for Indigent Defense because it remains one of the incarceration capitals of the nation, a leader in poverty and disenfranchisement, and victim to a continued crisis in public defense,” said Concerts for Indigent Defense founder Stephen Saloom. “Louisiana’s failure to respect the Right to Counsel and adequately fund its public defenders is as egregious as anywhere else in America. Musicians and communities across the city care deeply about equity and fairness, and recognize this just isn’t happening.” Saloom continued, “Music and musicians are so intertwined with the community– we will always consider New Orleans to be the epicenter of Concerts for Indigent Defense across the country.”

“We’re honored to have the continued support of our community. They understand the importance of an equitably-funded and adequately-resourced public defender. For too long, fairness and justice have been hindered by a lack of funding and resources. It’s time our decision makers find the political will to uphold the Sixth Amendment and do what’s right,” said Chief Defender Derwyn Bunton. “Without adequate representation, there is no justice. Our entire system fails and poor people are the ones hurt the most.”

Walter Wolfman Washington takes pride in his role in this year’s Concert for Indigent Defense: New Orleans. “The criminal justice system is inherently unfair and has affected the lives of so many, unfortunately many of us in the music industry. We have to do better because our community deserves it. I’m just happy to lend my voice to the cause,” said Mr. Washington.

d.b.a. has a long history of supporting community causes, and General Manager Michael Kohn says, “We’re honored to partner for this important event and play even a small role in pushing for change. More than anywhere else, New Orleans is just that, a community. We take care of each other and we have to do better caring for so many facing injustice.”

March 18th is the 57thanniversary of the United States Supreme Court decision in Gideon v. Wainwright, which established it a fundamental Constitutional right for everyone to be represented by an attorney when facing a loss of liberty. For poor people, though, this right is too often ignored, even though the Supreme Court has made clear the Right to Counsel extends to people who can’t afford representation.

New Orleans hosted the country’s first Concert for Indigent Defense in 2017, co-produced by John Thompson, who narrowly escaped wrongful execution after being wrongfully convicted. Mr. Thompson died later in 2017, and this year’s events are a resurrection of that part of his fight for justice for all poor people trying to navigate the legal system. New York City and Denver will also host Concerts for Indigent Defense while the movement continues to grow.

OPD Selected for ABA Center for Innovation Fellowship

: News; 20 February 2020

OPD was recently selected as a partner site for the American Bar Association Center for Innovation Fellowship program. Last fall, Loyola University New Orleans Law Grad Bianca Moore joined the second class of an exclusive cohort of ABA NextGen and Innovation Fellows. Moore will spend the next year embedded with OPD, representing poor people in Municipal Court held on bond, and documenting the individual and community impact of money bail.

Town Hall with New Orleans Saints & Players Coalition's Demario Davis

: News; 04 November 2019

New Orleans Saints Lineback and Players Coalition member, Demario Davis, will host a Town Hall discussion, Tuesday, November 5 from 3-5pm at Corpus Christi Church, about the critical role of public defense in our justice system and the immediate need for equitable funding for OPD.

Pack the Chamber - City Council Budget Hearing

: Calls To Action; 25 October 2019

Join us Thursday, October 31 at 10am for our budget hearing before the City Council. We will advocate for full and equitable funding for OPD and public defense. We are asking for 85% of the appropriation given to the DA be also given to OPD. This would allow us to more fully represent our clients and advocate for those facing the weight of the criminal legal system.

Demario Davis: New Orleans not giving criminal defendants what they need

: News; 25 October 2019

The Advocate: Saints' Demario Davis: New Orleans not giving criminal defendants what they need.

As you walk up the steps of the Orleans Parish Criminal Courthouse, you see engraved above the entrance, “The impartial administration of justice is the foundation of liberty.” But the city’s persistent refusal to sufficiently fund the office responsible for protecting people’s liberty has prevented the impartial administration of justice in Orleans Parish from becoming a reality.

For years, the Orleans Public Defenders Office has moved from one budget crisis to another. In 2012, funding shortfalls forced OPD to lay off a third of its staff. Three years later, and severely short-staffed, OPD had to refuse cases and waitlist people because it could no longer provide each person with the constitutional right to effective assistance of counsel.