For our legal system to be truly fair and equatable to all it's citizens major changes must be made. The bottom line facts are these: if you have the money to hire an attorney you may get good representation in a criminal trial. If you need a court appointed attorney you probably won't get adequate counsel.
The reason that court appointed attorney's don't do as great a job is that in most cases, they have to have a zillion court appointed cases to make any money at all.
And still...they don't make the kind of money most private law practitioners make.
Now the only caveat to this would be small town court appointed counselors because they usually take just a few cases and are usually pressed into service by a judge. They have more time to adequately represent their clients in many cases.
The prosecutors office has most of the power. Especially in large cities, their department may have a million Deputy District Attorney's, investigators and access to special cases specialists etc.
It is hard enough to find justice against all the resources of the District Attorney's Office with your own attorney. But, it is next to impossible to get justice with a court appointed attorney.
With the work load so great, the court appointed attorney rarely spends any time with his/her client. Sometimes they are so frazzled that the first time they see their client may be even right before they go into trial.
So, in order for "lady liberty" to balance out the scales of justice more money must be authorized for a defendents' court appointed representation. A new way of allocating those funds need be made in the interests of true justice.
It has been long known and whispered in the courts and jails of America, that if you are a rich man you can get justice. If you are a poor man you receive little.
We can change the system. Now is the time to move. In the end, we will be judged by how we treat the weakest and poorest of those in our society.
Giving a person a court appointed attorney at no cost is one. But then, increasing the compensation for those attorney's to make it worth their while to do a better job... to lessen their case loads...to free them to spend more time and to do a better job for their court appointments.
Required time segments for the money must be required in order for this idea to work. The court appointed attorney must spend more time with his/her client to make this work and monitored by the court. Which means even more money.
When we "stand up" for the poor to seek justice for them
we make America a better and stronger place for all Americans.
We are citizens of America. We have rights. All of us. Even the accused.
We are blessed to have laws that state that every citizen is innocent until PROVEN guilty. Not so in countries like China. It is the other way around in that country. We are American's. We have rights. Thank the Almighty!
While most American's are law abiding people, we the people must rise for the defence of liberty for everyone.
The beacon of light that shines on Lady Liberty shines even brighter tonight. The days and future of America can be even brighter in the days ahead.
The words come alive, "...for Liberty... and Justice for all."
