The Poor Peoples Judge?

As New Orleans continues to battle it's way
back from the effects of hurricane Katrina a
certain judge in the city fights to make sure
that there is no miscarriage of justice while
the area struggles to reform its justice system.
Read the article below and let us know if the
judge is sincere or grandstanding?


The exchange between judge and defendant happens many times every court day. "You got a lawyer? Can you afford one?" Judge Arthur L. Hunter Jr. will say in his customarily affable way, which often puts the person standing in front of him at ease. "OK, I'm going to appoint you a public defender."But the number of times Hunter has said those words and then seen the defendant receive subpar representation spurred him to take on the city's indigent-defense program.

Already troubled before Hurricane Katrina, the system has deteriorated into what Hunter called "unbelievable, unconstitutional, totally lacking in basic professional standards of legal representation and a mockery of what a criminal justice system should be in a Western, civilized nation.

"The Orleans Parish Criminal District Court judge has held high-profile hearings into post-Katrina legal snafus and delays involving indigent defendants. In the last two months, he has suspended the prosecution of cases against 142 defendants and ordered the release of 20 who were still jailed. In doing so, he propelled the city's cash-strapped and overburdened public defender program into the national spotlight. Its performance has become a controversial topic in a city battling record levels of violent crime.

Supporters view Hunter as a near-fanatic for fairness. Critics call his actions outrageous, and charge that he is a publicity-seeker more interested in protecting the rights of criminals than those of victims and their families. The judge's recent ruling that suspended about 100 prosecutions and freed 20 was halted by an order from the Louisiana 4th Circuit Court of Appeal, after an appeal by Orleans Parish Dist. Atty. Eddie Jordan. The appeal is awaiting a ruling by the 4th Circuit.Hunter is determined to press ahead.

In recent weeks, he has notified more than 300 private lawyers of potential appointment to represent indigent defendants. And he has continued to call for increased state funding to reform the indigent-defense system.





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