Dade Public Defender: Caseload is Untenable; Miami-Dade's Public Defender Testifies About how Overworked his Office Is in a Bid to Reduce his Caseload


    July 31, 2008
    Miami Herald
    By Susannah A. Nesmith

    Miami-Dade Public Defender Bennett Brummer took the witness stand Wednesday to make the case that his office is so underfunded his attorneys must refuse to take hundreds of cases.

    Brummer is asking Circuit Judge Stanford Blake to allow his office to refuse appointments for all new felony cases that don't involve the death penalty. He's arguing that his attorneys are already overburdened and can't do their constitutional duty for any new clients.

    ''Our capacity to handle existing cases is declining, and I expect it to get much worse very rapidly,'' Brummer said.

    Brummer said his budget has been cut more than 10 percent in the past two budget cycles and that he's expecting further cuts before the Legislature meets in the spring. Those cuts have forced him to stop replacing most attorneys who leave, which has increased workloads for everyone in the office. The increased workloads have led more people to leave the office.

    ''The dollars were down significantly, the cases were up significantly and the attorney turnover went through the roof,'' he said.

    EXPLORING OPTIONS

    Brummer's attorney, Parker Thompson, who is representing the Public Defender's Office for free on the issue, asked him if there weren't other people in the office who could help out. Brummer said he had already moved people around, but it wasn't enough.

    ''We've taken our [third degree felonies] and given them to virtually anybody who can walk or breathe, including our supervising attorneys,'' he said.

    If the judge allows Brummer to refuse new appointments, those cases will be assigned to a new office created by the Legislature last year to handle cases in which the public defender has a conflict of interest. However, the head of that office has said he would be unable to handle all of the cases Brummer is trying to refuse.

    Ultimately, private attorneys would have to be appointed and paid by the state to handle many cases if Blake rules in Brummer's favor.

    Fearing that criminal cases may be thrown out because of the lack of attorneys to represent the defendants, Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernández Rundle is fighting Brummer's effort. So is the Florida Prosecuting Attorneys Association.

    ''What he's doing has implications for the entire state,'' said association member Buddy Jacobs.

    Several other public defenders around the state have refused to take some cases because of underfunding, but no one has tried to turn down as many as Brummer.

    Miami-Dade Chief Assistant State Attorney Don Horn questioned Brummer about the numbers his office gave Blake, suggesting the public defender was inflating the numbers by including cases that were resolved quickly, many of them before the defendants were even arraigned.

    Brummer insisted his office has to represent those defendants, too.

    NUMBERS ACCURATE

    Brummer's chief assistant, Carlos Martinez, also testified Wednesday. He said the numbers were accurate and that assistant public defenders are handling far more cases every year than they should be -- and more than most state and national standards recommend.

    ''I'm talking about individual human beings who are entitled to representation who are not getting it,'' he said.

    Brummer is retiring when his term ends at the end of the year. Martinez ran unopposed for his seat and will take over in January.

    Brummer has refused to accept new appointments three times in the past 30 years because of excessive caseloads. The courts have upheld his right to do so each time.

    Blake will hear arguments and may take more testimony on Thursday, but he is not expected to rule immediately.



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