Courts in Oregon's Multnomah County, home to Portland, have dismissed nearly 300 cases this year, including felonies, due to a shortage of public defenders
"and released a tally this week of dismissed cases. He pledged to release new numbers each week to draw attention to the crisis.; in 53% of them, property crime was the primary charge. The next most common primary charge was for weapon crimes, which accounted for 16% of dismissed felonies, while person crimes, which include assault and robbery, accounted for 12%.
The head of Oregon's public defenders' office said that she would work with Schmidt “to address this systemic access to justice emergency.” Oregon's system for providing attorneys to criminal defendants who can't afford them has shown cracks for years, but case backlogs havesince the coronavirus pandemic. The public defender shortage has overwhelmed the courts, frustrated defendants and impacted crime victims, who experts say experience more trauma when cases are dismissed or take longer to be resolved.
The public defender shortage is “the predictable end result” of the unique contracting system, said Jon Mosher, deputy director of the Sixth Amendment Center. According to Mosher, the contracting and subcontracting of public defense services makes it difficult for the state to track which attorneys are assigned to which cases.
“You’re being asked as a public defender to be a lawyer, a social worker, a counselor, an investigator,” said Carl Macpherson, executive director of Metropolitan Public Defender, a large nonprofit public defender firm in Portland."The criminal legal system doesn’t help people with severe issues. It’s a short-term punitive response to a bigger issue.”
Malaysia Latest News, Malaysia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
GI Joe: A Real American Hero #300 Preview: Snake Eyes is Back!This is it! The final issue of GI Joe published by IDW. It's a preview of GI Joe: A Real American Hero 300! comics idw
Read more »
Iran situation 'critical' with more than 300 killed -UN rights chiefThe U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights said that the situation in Iran was ‘critical.' According to the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, more than 300 people have been killed so far, including more than 40 children
Read more »
From 2018 to 2022, Philly Schools Have Had More Than 300 LockdownsThrough a public records request, the NBC10 Investigators obtained school lockdown logs kept by the School District of Philadelphia — as well as school security, or lockdown, drills.
Read more »
The Central Texas Food Bank will feed nearly 300 families this holiday seasonSome Austinites were able to load up in their vehicles and receive food for this Thanksgiving holiday.
Read more »
Oregon Governor Pardons 45,000 Marijuana Offenders in Bid to 'Right the Wrongs' of Failed Drug War'No one deserves to be forever saddled with the impacts of a conviction for simple possession of marijuana—a crime that is no longer on the books in Oregon,' said OregonGovBrown as she pardoned 45,000 people convicted of state cannabis offenses.
Read more »
Utah coach Kyle Whittingham not making excuses for struggles vs. OregonIn the aftermath of Utah_Football’s 20-17 loss at Oregon, head coach Kyle Whittingham lamented the fact that his offense never got in sync.
Read more »