Defender Non-Track Sessions
This is a tenative schedule and is subject to change.
Thursday, November 17, 2005
Defining the Future: A Review of Criminal and Habeas Decisions in the U.S. Supreme Court 2004-2005 |
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1:45 pm - 3:15 pm |
| Analysis and discussion of the impact of recent Supreme Court criminal and habeas decisions on defending the indigent accused. Written synopsis provided. |
| Marshall Hartman, Marshall J. Hartman, Attorney at Law; Laurence A. Benner, California Western School of Law, San Diego, California |
Public Defender Agencies and the Representation of Persons with Mental Illness (Civil and Criminal) |
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1:45 pm - 3:15 pm |
| Most public defender offices do not have a mental health division to handle, train and consult with counsel around issues such as competence to stand trial and criminal responsibility. Even those few offices that are responsible for the representation, in civil proceedings, of persons in jeopardy of psychiatric or sexually dangerous person commitments or forced treatment typically do not have a mental health division. In this session, one or more existing public defender mental health divisions will be described and suggestions offered as to how other offices might best deal with systemic issues raised in the representation of defendants with mental illness. |
| Stan Goldman, Massachusetts Committee for Public Counsel Services; Deborah Fowler, Texas Appleseed ; Rebecca Cox, Office of the Miami-Dade County Public Defender |
The Role of the Deputy to the Chief Defender |
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1:45 pm - 3:15 pm |
| Deputies of state and large county defender programs fill an important leadership position in defender organizations. Deputies are invited to gather for a roundtable discussion of their duties and responsibilities, the nature of their leadership role, how they support the chief defender, the skills they need to succeed (e.g., problem solving, project implementation, conflict management, implementing changes, making decisions, creating public value) and mistakes to avoid as a deputy. |
| Susan Storey, Connecticut Division of Public Defender Services; Carlos Martinez, Office of the Miami-Dade County Public Defender |
Defending the Rights of Medical Marijuana Patients |
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3:30 pm - 5:00 pm |
| Even in non-medical marijuana states, a medical marijuana defense based on necessity may be available. This session will discuss the availability of such defense in both medical marijuana states and non-medical marijauna states. It will detail strategies for presenting such defense, including discussions about quantity, methods of ingestion, and expert testimony. There will also be a discussion of the federal/state conflict and the Supreme Court's recent decision in Gonzales v. Raich. |
| Joseph Elford, Americans For Safe Access |
The Hottest (and Worst) Legislative Trends |
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3:30 pm - 5:00 pm |
| The Hottest (and Worst) Legislative Trends session is an annual review of the highlights of federal and state legislative activity during the year. The focus the session includes the diminished right to court appointed counsel, re-entry in the community, habeas corpus review, access to subscriber records, immigration/trafficking of persons and obtaining funding for technology in the courtroom and the benefits of such. |
| Deborah Del Prete Sullivan, Connecticut Office of Chief Public Defender; Michael Mears, Director, Georgia Public Defender Standards Council; Thomas G. Becker, State Public Defender, Iowa; David Carroll, Director of Research & Evaluations, NLADA; Jon Mosher, Resource Coordinator, NLADA |
Friday, November 18, 2005
The Las Vegas Experience: Using NLADA Evaluations and Technical Assistance to Successfully Improve and Reform A Country Indigent Defense System |
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8:30 am - 10:00 am |
| In March 2003, NLADA issued a comprehensive evaluation report on the Clark County (Nevada) Public Defender Office. That report documented years of underfunding, a lack of training and staff development, and significant leadership lapses. The mechanisms and quality of representation were also criticized. This session will address and describe the new leadership imperatives and efforts necessary to reform a problematic public defender office. We will also outline the value provided by NLADA's hands-on techinical assistance and the areas of substantial reform and change which we have directed and implemented. |
| Philip Kohn, Clark County (Nevada) Public Defender Office; Phyllis Subin, Esq. |
Effective Cross-Examination Starts with Good Investigation: Why Witness Statements Are Important, How to Take Them, and How to Use Them |
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10:15 am - 11:45 am |
| This session will make explicit the relationship between good investigation and effective trial work. By showing how effective witness interviewing and statement taking can be the most valuable tool for the trial lawyer, we will see why lawyers must understand investigation and investigators must understand how their work product is used in trial. By understanding this relationship, participants will understand how winning trial work is a team effort and effective lawyering requires understanding all parts of trial preparation. |
| Jonathan Rapping, Georgia Public Defender Standards Council |
An Expungement Summit: A Nuts & Bolts Approach |
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10:15 am - 11:45 am |
| Those leaving prison are at risk in many instances of becoming homeless due to the many consequences of a criminal conviction. Many desperately seek employment, but getting a job is difficult with a criminal record. This session will explain the nuts and bolts of creating a community forum, an "Expungement Summit," by utilizing partnerships between public defenders, civil attorneys and community service agencies in order to effect holistic representation. |
| James Berry, Public Defender Service for the District of Columbia; Angela Acree, Public Defender Service for the District of Columbia ; Paula D. Scott, Public Defender Service for the District of Columbia; Kely Salzmann, Public Defender Service for the District of Columbia |
Developing Alternative Sentencing Plans (NASAMS) |
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2:15 pm - 3:45 pm |
| Defense-based alternative sentencing is designed to address mental
health issues that contributed to the client’s current criminal charges.
By offering a comprehensive plan for treatment as an alternative to
incarceration, the defense is able to craft a “win-win” resolution for
some of our most challenging cases. Susan Wardell will demonstrate
the power of including an individualized displacement study, outcome
studies on the impact on recidivism, and a plan for addressing
compliance issues in persuading the court to accept the alternative
sentence. Defense-based sentencing applies in both state and Federal
cases. Jim Tibensky, an expert in federal sentencing practice, will offer
tips on post-Booker sentencing plans, along with a discussion of the
broader range of treament options in the federal system. This session
will assist defense attorneys in both state and federal courts in creating
a comprehensive alternative sentencing plan almost certain to produce
favorable outcomes.
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| Susan Wardell, Alternative Sentencing & Mitigation Institute, Inc.; James Tibensky, Federal Defender Program of
Chicago
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Client Centered Representation: How to Develop a Relationship that Empowers Your Client and Keeps You on the Same Team |
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2:15 pm - 3:45 pm |
| This session will adress concerns for public defenders that often arise in the development of the attorney/client relationship. We will discuss barriers to developing this relationship and the best and worst ways of confronting them. We will start with the initial client interview and continue to work through issues that routinely come up in representation of criminal defendants through trial. Ethical Component: During the course of this session we will discuss ethical consideration that arise in the development of the attorney/client relationship. |
| Jonathan Rapping, Georgia Public Defender Standards Council; Ronald S. Sullivan, Jr., Associate Professor, Yale Law School |
The "New" Philadelphia Story: Building a Stronger Indigent Defense System Through Non-Lawyer Management/ Leadership Training and Staff Development Programs |
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4:00 pm - 5:30 pm |
| The Defender Association's nationally recognized lawyer/law intern training program did not include management/supervisor development and education for its non-lawyer managers, professionals, and administrative staff. Consistent with NLADA Training and Development Standards (1997), we conducted a training strategic planning process, and resolved to expand management and other training for non-lawyers. Working with the National Defender Leardership Institute, we developed a nine-month management/leadership training process and program for our non-lawyer managers and supervisors. We also implemented a non-lawyer staff orientation and training process. The is conference program will describe both the manager/leaedership and staff training process as well as its impact in building a stronger, better Defender Association. |
| Ellen Greenlee, Defender Association of Philadelphia; Linda Kosinski, Defender Association of Philadelphia; Dayna Roberts |
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