Renewed War on Drugs, harsher charging policies, stepped-up criminalization of immigrants — in the current climate, joining the NACDL is more important than ever. Members of NACDL help to support the only national organization working at all levels of government to ensure that the voice of the defense bar is heard.
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NACDL is committed to enhancing the capacity of the criminal defense bar to safeguard fundamental constitutional rights.
NACDL harnesses the unique perspectives of NACDL members to advocate for policy and practice improvements in the criminal legal system.
NACDL envisions a society where all individuals receive fair, rational, and humane treatment within the criminal legal system.
NACDL’s mission is to serve as a leader, alongside diverse coalitions, in identifying and reforming flaws and inequities in the criminal legal system, and redressing systemic racism, and ensuring that its members and others in the criminal defense bar are fully equipped to serve all accused persons at the highest level.
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Persons with disabilities represent one of the nation's largest minority populations. They are overrepresented in the criminal legal system as persons who are accused as well as persons who are victims of crime. In both the criminal legal system and in society generally, persons with disabilities are often denied meaningful access to the processes and protections afforded to the general population. These training materials and resources provide introduction to some of the issues and challenges that exist in our criminal legal system for persons with disabilities.
As a result of generous grant funding, NACDL is able to offer scholarship assistance to public defense attorneys to attend training programs.
On the surface the federal public defense system is an excellent example of what a healthy, vibrant public defense system should look like. Operating with a mix of institutional defenders and private counsel, a reliable funding stream, a strong infrastructure for training and support services, reasonable caseloads, and respectable rates of compensation for counsel, the federal system is often held out as the gold standard. However during a federal budget crisis, many of the foundational flaws of this lauded system were revealed.
Adequate Defender Services Funding Needed to Counter Prosecutorial Excesses - Washington, DC (April 1, 1998) -- Years of "woefully inadequate" funding for federal criminal defense services has resulted in "widespread and rampant abuse of citizens rights by federal prosecutors," the President of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) told a House Appropriations subcommittee today.
On behalf of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) we call upon the City of Aurora to rescind its Request for Proposals, R-2384, soliciting firms for bids to replace the city’s current public defense provider. The decision to replace the current public defense system with a flat fee contract will undercut public safety, undermine community confidence, and represents poor fiscal responsibility.
We write to voice our opposition to Senate Bill 8, a bill that would replace the multi-stakeholder Louisiana Public Defender Board with a state public defender selected by the Governor. If enacted, this legislation would significantly undermine the independence of the defense function in Louisiana, further eroding the community’s trust in our legal institutions and negatively impacting public safety, while wholly failing to address the core need of the state’s public defense system – a stable and robust stream of funding to insure the provision of constitutionally effective representation.
Access to high caliber training is critical to ensuring defense lawyers are able to fulfill their role as a meaningful check on government abuse, a knowledgeable advisor, and a zealous advocate on behalf of their clients. To help public defense lawyers get access to this training, NACDL, through generous grant funding, offers scholarship assistance. Scholarships are awarded in the form of full or partial reimbursements of registration. Limited travel reimbursement stipends may also be awarded to help defray the costs of travel and lodging.
As a result of generous grant funding, NACDL is able to offer scholarship assistance to public defense providers to attend training programs of their choice. Scholarships are awarded in the form of full or partial reimbursement of the registration costs of programs. Limited travel reimbursement stipends may also be awarded to qualifying individuals to help defray the costs of travel and lodging.
Use the form below to apply for NACDL's public defense scholarship.
The Champion of Public Defense Award recognizes an individual or group (lawyers and non-lawyers) for exceptional efforts in making positive changes to a local, county, state, or federal public defense system. Nominations are currently open for the 2023-24 award cycle.
The undersigned organizations are deeply concerned about the hugely destructive impact of proposed cuts to the federal indigent defense system. To avert the crisis, we are asking that you ensure that the Defenders Services account is fully funded at the requested amount.
On March 18, 1963, in Gideon v. Wainwright, the U.S. Supreme Court laid the foundation for our nation’s public defense system. In their ruling the Court made clear that providing counsel to those facing criminal charges was a “fundamental right, essential to a fair trial.” Today we continue to fight to make the constitutional promises of counsel and of a fair trial realities.
For many years, Michigan’s public defense system was deficient, failing to guarantee the effective assistance of counsel required by the Sixth Amendment. Michigan delegated responsibility for providing public defense to individual counties, providing no statewide training for public defense attorneys, no performance standards to govern their practice, and no review of their performance. In 2008, after an extensive investigation, the National Legal Aid and Defender Association issued a report that concluded that Michigan’s systems were some of the nation’s worst.
Complaint filed in Duncan v. State of Michigan, a civil rights class action brought pursuant to the Sixth and Fourteenth Amendment alleging inadequate funding and oversight of indigent defense services.
Complaint and NACDL's amicus brief filed in Duncan v. State of Michigan, a civil rights class action brought pursuant to the Sixth and Fourteenth Amendment alleging inadequate funding and oversight of indigent defense services
State ex rel. Missouri Public Defender Commission, Cathy R. Kelly and Rod Hackathorn v. The Honorable John S. Waters and the Honorable Mark Orr (Mo. 2012)