Date of Award
Spring 2020
Degree Name
Bachelor of Arts
Department
Historical & Political Studies; College of Arts & Sciences
First Advisor
Angela Kachuyevski
Abstract
The Sixth Amendment guarantees the right to counsel for indigent defendants. Even though a constitutional right, indigent defense in the US suffers from significant problems. While scholars have attempted to provide solutions to the problems, a question persists, How are Indigent Defense Systems impacting how Access to Justice is being provided in the United States? To answer this question, a structured, focused comparison method was utilized to evaluate US indigent defense systems. Case studies were chosen based upon the delivery and majority of funding for indigent defense coming from counties. Right to counsel for Access to Justice was defined by the competence of counsel, rights of defendants, and space and resources afforded to counsel. I hypothesized an independent commission was necessary to ensure Access to Justice was provided. By asking the same questions of each case study, I determined the majority of case studies with an independent commission were providing Access to Justice adequately. Those case studies without, were not adequately providing Access to Justice. The presence of independent commissions is promising for Access to Justice for indigent defendants, since the presence of case studies with deficient systems shows Access to Justice is not being adequately provided.
Recommended Citation
Hartman, Travis, "Right to Counsel: Improving Access to Justice in US Indigent Defense Systems" (2020). Capstone Showcase. 1.
https://scholarworks.arcadia.edu/showcase/2020/pgl/1
Included in
Criminology and Criminal Justice Commons, Models and Methods Commons, Other Political Science Commons, Public Policy Commons
Right to Counsel: Improving Access to Justice in US Indigent Defense Systems
The Sixth Amendment guarantees the right to counsel for indigent defendants. Even though a constitutional right, indigent defense in the US suffers from significant problems. While scholars have attempted to provide solutions to the problems, a question persists, How are Indigent Defense Systems impacting how Access to Justice is being provided in the United States? To answer this question, a structured, focused comparison method was utilized to evaluate US indigent defense systems. Case studies were chosen based upon the delivery and majority of funding for indigent defense coming from counties. Right to counsel for Access to Justice was defined by the competence of counsel, rights of defendants, and space and resources afforded to counsel. I hypothesized an independent commission was necessary to ensure Access to Justice was provided. By asking the same questions of each case study, I determined the majority of case studies with an independent commission were providing Access to Justice adequately. Those case studies without, were not adequately providing Access to Justice. The presence of independent commissions is promising for Access to Justice for indigent defendants, since the presence of case studies with deficient systems shows Access to Justice is not being adequately provided.
Comments
PGL Student