Justice for All: A Proposal to Expand the Harris County Public Defender’s Office and Create a Model Indigent Defense System
This report outlines the potential for growing the PDO into a robust, full-service defense program suitable for the third-largest county in the nation, including increased caseload, expansion of services, additional personnel, space requirements, cost, and effect upon the use of private appointed counsel. Other needed reforms to the County’s indigent defense system will be described as well, including expanding the Managed Assigned Counsel program (MAC), instituting a centralized indigency determination and appointment of counsel process, and enhancing JAD’s indigent defense research capabilities.