NEW ORLEANS -- The head of the Orleans Parish Public Defender's office said he may have to start refusing cases after a one-time allocation from the city of New Orleans dries up, with no funding included in next year's budget.
But according to City Council members, the office still has a dedicated source of funding.
“You can only prosecute cases as quickly as you can defend them,” said Derwyn Bunton, the Orleans Parish chief public defender.
He said the office will likely have to start refusing clients within two to three weeks, after getting no increase in funding from the state and getting no general fund dollars from the city.
“What will happen is they'll sit until we can assign them a lawyer, or the courts will begin assigning lawyers at random, basically,” Bunton said about indigent suspects who are refused by the office.
But City Council Budget Chair Cynthia Hedge-Morrell said the city is, in fact, funding the office, with a $5 fee on every red-light camera ticket.
“We have set aside for them over $600,000 that they’re gonna get next year and every year thereafter, and we're the only municipality in this state that helps the public defender,” said Hedge-Morrell.
“First, we haven't seen a dime of that money. Second, we have no idea or guarantees how much that is going to amount to,” Bunton responded.
In recent weeks, the City Council had to pass an ordinance to get the red-light camera money to Bunton's office. His attorneys represent those who can't afford a lawyer in both state and municipal courts, tens of thousands of clients.
According to Bunton, they have caseloads that far exceed national standards.
“We're way over, so my orders are from Gene Faria, the state public defender, stop taking cases unless you can ethically handle them or I will make you stop taking cases,” Bunton said.
Ironically, the state Public Defender Board is where the office gets most of its funding.
With the possibility of state budget deficits looming, Bunton said he won't see any increase there, and in the meantime, recent city increases in funding for other criminal justice agencies is upping his case load, including increases for the Orleans Parish District Attorney’s office.
"With the acceptance rate being nearly 100 percent for drug cases right now, where it used to be somewhere in the 60s, it's representing a real increase in workload for our office and our lawyers,” Bunton said.
“Jefferson Parish doesn't fund their indigent defender. St. Charles doesn't. Baton Rouge doesn't,” said Hedge-Morrell.
She continued that she was concerned last year's general fund allocation would encourage the Orleans Parish Public Defender’s Office to ask for funding every year.
“Shame on them for making the public think we're not helping them out,” she said.
According to the budget chair, the City Council offered to help the public defender's office lobby for more funds in Baton Rouge. Last year, Bunton said he did get an increase from the state. However, he continued that it's an issue of adequate representation that could slow down progress made with criminal justice over the past year.
