tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7039151065677223586.post6938943665468165320..comments2023-09-26T05:38:31.834-07:00Comments on Public Defender Revolution: Got Guilt?carol dhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12093990237072086425noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7039151065677223586.post-50613359422734785392013-07-20T15:40:11.252-07:002013-07-20T15:40:11.252-07:00I have only just found this blog after many years ...I have only just found this blog after many years - I don't know if you still read these comments. I totally know the feeling of guilt. But mine came from concerns that I had not done the best most perfect job on every case. If a client got convicted, I'd spend sleepless nights ruminating: was it because I should have asked different questions in cross, should I have articulated that point differently in my closing, should I have dealt with that piece of evidence differently, did I make that application or submission too early or too late or should I have phrased it differently before the judge etc.? I know there's the trial every lawyer runs - the one in court and the one in their mind that night. But do others feel 'guilt' like this? I hated losing cases. How do you deal with that, with the commitment to clients, and the perfectionism that a trial demands?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7039151065677223586.post-39049293536706677182010-02-25T19:04:31.790-08:002010-02-25T19:04:31.790-08:00I'm a little late to the party, but I apprecia...I'm a little late to the party, but I appreciate what you said about feeling guilty. Too much to do, never enough time, wondering if I'll be ready for trial. I work way more than the 40 hours per week I'm required to put in...and then I dream about it at night! Yes, I'm a public defender. I wouldn't do any other job EVER. Still, I worry and stress about my cases. My office is way over the ABA suggested limits. I have several "life" cases and not enough time to prepare. I fear the worst for my clients...will I ever get it all done???memesqhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05175047287525518430noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7039151065677223586.post-820982096177583532010-01-31T13:27:02.080-08:002010-01-31T13:27:02.080-08:00Welcome to the blawgosphere. You are off to a gre...Welcome to the blawgosphere. You are off to a great start. I forget exactly how I ended up at this site but I think it was through a referral at Grits for Breakfast. I will be adding you to my blogroll.<br /><br />I am a former PD from Philly. I remember sitting in my office with my former office mate just a couple of months before he left for private practice. He was a good, committed, effective lawyer and also a die-hard, do-good liberal.<br /><br />He had just gotten off the phone with a client. I could hear just one side of the conversation but it was clear that the client was mad at him for something. <br /><br />He put down the phone and looked at me. "I have gotten to the point where I absolutely hate our clients," he said. "It is time for me to leave." He was gone three months later.<br /><br />Your post also brought to mind another story. My then 17-year-old daughter decided to come to court with me one day. I was running the list in a misdemeanor trial room and, between open cases and violations of probation, I must have had 40 clients on my list for that day. I thought I was doing a pretty good job, though the judge was mad at me for putting on what she believed was a frivolous motion to suppress on a case she thought should have pled. <br /><br />Despite all her experience, the judge didn't seem to realize that many clients want to fight their cases no matter how poor the judge may think the case is. <br /><br />I stepped out of the room for a while to convey a last minute offer from the prosecutor. When I returned, my daughter was ashen-faced. Later, during a break, I asked her what had happened. <br /><br />"You won't believe the things they said about you when you were out of the room."<br /><br />"Who?"<br /><br />"The judge and the court people."<br /><br />The judge apparently complained that I was taking so long to convey the offer. <br /><br />My daughter left shortly thereafter, her faith in the American legal system forever shaken. <br /><br />Later, when the gallery was empty right before adjournment, I complained to the judge about the things that had been said about me when I was out of the room. "At least, I said, you could have avoided saying those things about me when my daughter was in the room." <br /><br />"Oh, that was your daughter? I was wondering who she was." <br /><br />"Yes. That was my daughter." I had specifically alerted the court clerks that my daughter was going to be in the courtroom that day precisely to avoid this type of thing from happening. Apparently nobody passed that fact along to the judge before she took the bench.<br /><br />"Well, you were taking so long to convey the offer, and we needed to get things moving again." The judge's personal assistant later told me, in the closest thing I came to an apology, that the judge was worrying about being late for a hair appointment. <br /><br />I tried to explain how you need time to convey an offer effectively. It's a big decision, and it takes a long time with people (most people) who don't really understand the system. It's not in anyone's best interest to just jam it down their throats, even if it is a good offer. <br /><br />"All of that should have been explained to the defendant when she came in for her interview."<br /><br />Right. The last thing we needed to do with clients who already mistrusted us was to start talking about plea bargaining during the initial interview. Besides, most clients don't bother to come in for an interview. In many cases, we are seeing the client for the very first time on the date of trial. <br /><br />Anyway, I thank you for allowing me to get that off my chest. I look forward to following this blog. Again, you are off to a great start.Jamisonhttp://www.koehlerlaw.net/blog/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7039151065677223586.post-67411342249529587292010-01-26T20:08:05.283-08:002010-01-26T20:08:05.283-08:00Absolutely! (I even have some friends in private ...Absolutely! (I even have some friends in private practice ;) ) S. Carolina PDs told me I had somehow hidden the email address: it's now under the Yep! icon, but also here: frayedknotpd@gmail.com. We're just getting going, but we're setting up a nonprofit organization, and we'll let you know the details.carol dhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12093990237072086425noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7039151065677223586.post-73267332984754923582010-01-26T11:12:00.165-08:002010-01-26T11:12:00.165-08:00Can a criminal defense lawyer in private practice ...Can a criminal defense lawyer in private practice join the Revolution? If it helps, I served on Ohio's Public Defender Commission for a term. If it hurts, I'll pretend I didn't tell.Jeff Gamsohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09869425697771419546noreply@blogger.com