NCJ Number
187491
Date Published
2000
Length
166 pages
Annotation
This is the final report on the National Symposium on Indigent Defense 2000 ("Redefining Leadership for Equal Justice"), held in Washington, DC, June 29-30, 2000, for the purpose of encouraging criminal justice professionals and defenders to work together to protect the innocent, promote the integrity of the criminal justice system, and restore public confidence in the criminal justice system.
Abstract
Over 500 symposium participants from all 50 States, as well as territories, participated in multidisciplinary teams composed of defenders, prosecutors, judges, police, corrections officials, bar leaders, county officials, and other criminal justice stakeholders. For 2 days the teams participated in 16 workshops, State-delegation collaborative exercises, informal meetings, and plenary sessions. This second national symposium revisited themes from the first symposium and raised new challenges that face indigent defense service providers. Among the challenges addressed was the persistence of serious problems related to lack of resources and experts to support the defense function, inadequate training and compensation, the lack of stable defense institutions and State infrastructures, juvenile justice disparities, and significant systemic racial disparities. In addressing these shortcomings and identifying the many opportunities for reform, the symposium participants examined the following themes and issues: the importance of collaboration, unfairness in the justice system, the criminalization of poverty, race and bias in the criminal justice system, areas where collaboration is improving the justice system, areas where more collaboration is needed, the use of technology as a tool but not as a panacea, data collection and analysis, litigation as a last resort, and striving together toward shared goals. This report includes collaborative recommendations for action by State delegations. Appended symposium agenda and a participant list