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By Frank X. Neuner, Jr.
Representatives, from left, of Louisiana’s public defender system:
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to ensure that children are not unduly criminalized and have opportunities for rehabilitation.
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civil rights of the poor and nationally recognized for his experience in capital cases, including
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adults in misdemeanor and felony cases.
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Addressing the Crisis:
Immediate and Future Needs
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prompted public defense reform in 2007.
Since a number of district public defender
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of resources between the prosecution and
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defense in Louisiana has long been funded
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passed through the Legislature without
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of opposition. The Public Defender Act of
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of the public defense function in the creation
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public defense challenge was on the hori
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the Public Defender Act of 2007 did not
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defense funding. This issue — chronic
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direct representation of indigent defendants
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the right to counsel based on fees collected
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increased regulation of caseload limits
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St. Bernard Parish District Defender Tom
Gernhauser, second from right, takes part in the
ground-breaking ceremony for the district’s new
courthouse. Photo provided by Louisiana Public
Defender Board.
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other districts do not. This is but one fac
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and raise constitutional concerns about the
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the tens of thousands of people who
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Progress and Challenges
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a model practice for attainable progress.
Through our support of the Innocence
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defense is funded. This is the most immedi
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promotes the public welfare of all Louisian
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FOOTNOTES
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0!$# ]http://www.americanbar.
org/content/dam/aba/administrative/legal_aid_indigent_defendants/ls_sclaid_def_tenprinciplesbooklet.
authcheckdam.pdf.
3. http://www.nola.com/opinions/index.
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www.
brennancenter.org.
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http://
www.americanbar.org/content/dam/aba/administrative/legal_aid_indigent_defendants/ls_sclaid_def_tenprinciplesbooklet.authcheckdam.pdf.
7. See www.ip-no.org.
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Frank X. Neuner, Jr. has
been managing partner
Laborde & Neuner since
1998. He has chaired the
Louisiana Public Defender Board since 2008. He
received a BS degree in
1972 and his JD degree in
1976 from Louisiana State
University and its Paul
M. Hebert Law Center.
He was admitted to practice in Louisiana in 1976
and in Texas in 1994. He served as president of the
Louisiana State Bar Association from June 2005June 2006. He served in the American Bar Association House of Delegates from 1999-2009. (Ste.
200, 1001 West Pinhook Rd., Lafayette, LA 70503)