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The Missouri public defense system has been shaped by lawsuits that the ACLU has brought forth.\xa0

Meet Anthony Rothert, one of the individuals behind those lawsuits.

Anthony is the Director of Integrated Advocacy at the American Civil Liberties Union of Missouri and is here today to give you the inside scoop on the cases.

You\u2019ll learn the ins and outs of the indigent system in this state, from long wait times to high public defender turnover rates.

This episode will leave you with renewed hope that there are people out there working tirelessly to positively change the system for good.\xa0

Key Topics and Takeaways:

• Anthony\u2019s role in the Missouri criminal justice system and the history of public defense in the state. [4:52]
• How public defender turnover affects indigent clients. [9:32]
• Public defense legislative history in the state. [12:27]
• Ethical dilemmas in the Missouri indigent system. [19:52]
• Anthony dives deep into the class-action lawsuits against the state of Missouri. [32:06]
• Indigent wait times in Missouri. [37:56]
• Goals for the future. [43:03]
• Progressive prosecutors. [50:04]

Guest:

Anthony Rothert, Director of Integrated Advocacy, American Civil Liberties Union of Missouri

Resources:

ACLU of Missouri\xa0

\xa02009 Spangenberg Report

1993 Spangenberg Group Report\xa0

2005 Spagenberg Group Report\xa0

Michael Barret Letter to Gov Nixon\xa0

2014 ABA Missouri Workload Study

Memorable Quotes:

\u201cPart of the reason attorneys leave is they\u2019re overworked, they are not satisfied by their work because they don\u2019t have time to do as good a job as they would like. And they\u2019re not even paid well for it.\u201d (15:24, Anthony)

\u201cDefendants are faced with a choice. You can proceed without counsel, or you can wait.\u201d (38:57, Anthony)

\u201cWe will be asking the court to enter a judgment in the case requiring the state to provide enough money so we don\u2019t have waitlists.\u201d (42:02, Anthony)

\u201cWe could decriminalize things. That would solve a lot.\u201d (44:11, Anthony)

\u201cIt\u2019s easy to say that the far-off bad guy is not good. But then when you work with attorneys who work in these offices, you realize, okay, they\u2019re doing their job, which is to protect constitutional rights for individuals.\u201d (48:09, Hunter)

Contact Hunter Parnell:

hwparnell@publicdefenseless.com

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