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Under Maryland law, when an individual is arrested for an offense they are brought before a district court commissioner. The commissioner determines if there is probable cause that a crime has been committed (for those arrested without a warrant) and whether the accused is eligible for pretrial release or will be detained. At the time the suit was filed prosecutors appeared at these hearings, but no attorney was appointed for the accused. District Court Commissioners are not required to have a law degree. NACDL Amicus Supporting Right to Counsel
Recognizing that pretrial detention, even if only for a few days, can have devastating impacts on the arrestee and their family, the Court found that this hearing was a "critical stage" in the proceedings, and thus under the due process clause of Maryland's Declaration of Rights, an accused was entitled to state-furnished representation.
In the wake of the court's ruling that eligible arrestees were entitled to court appointed counsel at initial appearance hearings, the state allocated an additional $10 million to hire additional attorneys to staff these hearings.
More on DeWolfe v. Richmond can be found in: Douglas L. Colbert, The Maryland Access to Justice Story: Indigent Defendants' Right to Counsel at First Appearance,
