Capital Defender Head Will Resign:
He Says Office Underfunded

September 1, 2007
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
By Bill Rankin

The head of the state capital defender office said Friday he will resign because there is not enough money in the budget to adequately fund the representation of death-penalty defendants.

In a letter sent Thursday to the Georgia Public Defender Standards Council, Chris Adams said council should "tell the truth" to the courts about the lack of resources and halt all capital proceedings until there are enough resources for the office's lawyers to do their jobs.

"We must have the type of resources that allow us to get the job done," Adams wrote. "The current budget does not."

Because the public defender council does not support his position, Adams said, he will step down. The council was created by the Legislature four years ago to oversee representation for people unable to afford their own lawyers. The statewide defender system replaced a patchwork of county-run programs widely criticized for their inability to adequately represent many defendants.

Since Adams became director of the capital defender office in 2005, the office has enjoyed a remarkable success rate in a state where support of capital punishment runs high.

None of the 35 cases resolved so far by the office resulted in a death sentence. All but four of these cases were resolved by plea agreements reached with prosecutors before they went to trial, saving the state and counties large sums in court costs and fees for attorneys and expert witnesses.

"It's a shame the state is losing someone of Chris's stature because of the failure of the state to provide sufficient funds to do the job," Atlanta criminal defense lawyer Jack Martin said. "How can anyone expect the office to represent clients competently with half the money they need and an increasing caseload?"

In his letter, Adams notified the council there is not enough money to pay for private lawyers and expert witnesses in so-called "conflict" cases. These are multi-defendant cases where, because of legal ethics rules, the capital defender office can only represent one defendant. Private attorneys, who are paid by the hour, are appointed to represent the others.

The funding for almost two dozen conflict cases has already run out this fiscal year, which began July 1, Adams said.

In his letter of resignation, Adams said he was recently rebuffed by the defender council when he submitted a $10.5 million budget request for next year. Instead, the council approved a budget of $4.3 million. That is about $3 million less than the capital defender was provided two years ago and, in the meantime, its caseload has continued to rise.

Wilson DuBose, chairman of the defender council, said in a statement that Adams and his office's lawyers had served their clients well.

"While Chris has acknowledged the philosophical disagreement he has with the members of the [council] over how the capital defender office should respond to the current funding problems, there can be no disagreement over the need to have a properly funded and efficiently managed capital defender program in Georgia," DuBose said.

The council will continue to work with the Legislature and Gov. Sonny Perdue to "assure that goal is achieved," DuBose said.

Jerry Word, a council board member and public defender of the Coweta Judicial Circuit, will become interim director.

UPDATE

THE STORY SO FAR

> Previously: The state public defender program in May eliminated 12 percent of its work force because of budget cuts imposed by the state Legislature.

> The latest: The head of the state capital defender office has tendered his resignation, saying there is not enough money for his lawyers to effectively represent indigent death-penalty defendants.

> What's next: A study committee is reviewing the state public defender system and is expected to submit its recommendations to the Legislature in the coming months.


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