Date Published: June 26, 2006   

Public defenders prepare for more cases

The Associated Press

Public defenders across South Carolina are preparing to get a number of new cases after the state increased penalties for domestic violence and the U.S. Supreme Court ruled more defendants have a right to an attorney.

The high court ruling in an Alabama case likely means any defendant facing jail time, even as little as 30 days, is entitled to a lawyer, said T. Patton Adams, executive director of the South Carolina Commission on Indigent Defense.

That could mean public defenders would have to serve all indigent defendants even in magistrate's court, Adams said.

The state's tougher domestic violence laws, which increase jail time and fines, also will mean more defendants will have the right to a lawyer.

And those public defenders may have to take on the new cases without much more money.

This year, the state approved $2.2 million to hire additional prosecutors for criminal domestic violence cases but only $460,000 for the public defenders who will represent many of the accused, Adams said.

Also, South Carolina ranks 48th in the nation in amount per-capita it spends on indigent defense, Adams said.

Statewide, public defenders already represent more than 80 percent of the cases on the courts' dockets, and in some areas, the total tops 90 percent, Adams said.

"Unless you have money to hire defense attorneys, the system breaks down," Adams said.

One Orangeburg public defender said his office is overwhelmed even before most of the new cases come in.

Currently, the six lawyers in Michael Culler's office have caseloads three to four times the size recommended by the American Bar Association, he said.

In Charleston County, Chief Public Defender Jennifer Kneece Shealy said she has already seen her lawyers' caseloads rise.

She asked the county for more money this year to hire another attorney to represent clients in magistrate court, but it wasn't available, Shealy said.

The increase in cases will slow down courts statewide, she said.

"I really can't keep up with people now," Shealy said. "I know the crime, not the person."

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Information from: The Post and Courier,