FIVE FACES OF THE PUBLIC DEFENDER

• Published in: Boston College law review Vol. 64; no. 7; pp. 1507 - 1554
• Main Author: Howe, Scott W
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Newton Centre Boston College School of Law 01.01.2023
• Subjects: Advocacy; Biden, Joseph R Jr; Courthouses; Criminal pleas; Critics; Funding; Nominations; Public defenders; Stigma; Trials
• ISSN: 0161-6587; 1930-661X

Special stigma attaches to zealous public defenders. They are widely viewed as undermining the public welfare, of acting immorally, and of inappropriately empathizing with criminals over victims. Poor funding for public defender offices in many jurisdictions underscores what the body politic in those places thinks of unsparingly zealous public defense. The stigma finds sustenance in an account endorsed by zealous public defenders themselves-that they function as client-centered advocates, operating largely outside the criminal justice system and without caring about the public welfare, about guilt or innocence, or much about victims. This scenario poses a dilemma for zealous public defenders who aim to counter the allegations or for poorly funded defender offices that seek to acquire more resources so that they can consistently provide zealous representation. How can they rebut criticisms with which they largely agree? This Article argues that they could, in theory, acknowledge their work as multi-faceted, requiring that they sometimes serve as zealous advocates but often also in several roles that directly benefit the state. This alternate perspective finds support in the Supreme Court's acknowledgement in recent years that criminal justice has become. for the most part, a system of guilty pleas rather than of trials. Although this strategy is the most truthful and responsive to the critics, tlris Article finds it unworkable from the perspective of the zealous public defenders, which reveals a conundrum. Zealous public defenders must deceive themselves that they are rebels who do not care about the public interest (or about justice or victims) to effectively serve it. Although they face difficulty in making their own case, this Article exposes the reality and the illusion to help defend zealous public defenders against their critics.