Outreach to Client Communities
Most people do not think about public defenders
until they are arrested. As NYU law professor Kim Taylor-Thompson puts
it, "[c]ommunities themselves may not welcome defenders as partners in
any effort to address broader political issues. Only in rare instances
will a community even consider its local public defender as a resource
when tackling problems of community justice." Defenders can become more
visible and valued through community outreach.
In Las Vegas,
defenders set up a card table in a local public housing complex to help
local residents seal records and resolve bench warrants. In Bridgeport,
Connecticut, defenders conduct "Know Your Rights" workshops for those
in public housing. In Rhode Island the public defender wrote a letter
to agencies and organizations serving communities of color introducing
himself and inviting those groups to work together to improve the
criminal justice system. In Virginia, the Charlottesville-Albemarle
County Public Defender, an office created after years of lobbying by
community members, established a "Citizens Advisory Committee" to
formalize a connection to client communities.
- Working With the Community, For the Community: The Citizens Advisory Committee, Charlottesville, Virginia
- By-laws for Citizens Advisory Committee for the Charlottesville-Albemarle Public Defender Office
- Brennan Center Memo with Ideas for Community Outreach
- Northwest Community Law Office (Baltimore, MD): Accessible, Comprehensive Representation Located in the Community (Concept paper)
- Public Defenders In the Neighborhood: A Harlem Law Office Stresses Teamwork, Early Investigation
- Brennan Center "Staff Member Ties to Community" survey