NIJ's Research on Indigent Defense

Session Submission Type: Complete Thematic Panel

Abstract

The National Institute of Justice (NIJ) sponsors criminal court research and evaluation to identify tools, programs, and policies that satisfy public safety and cost efficiency goals while ensuring fair and equitable treatment of victims and defendants. NIJ's portfolio includes several grants awarded under NIJ's FY2012 solicitation for Social Science Research on Indigent Defense Systems and other funding opportunities. Panelists will present their research based on single and multisite evaluations of holistic defense programs, qualitative interviews with attorneys and defendants about the role of indigent defense for individuals with mental health disorders, and a multisite evaluation of the effects of counsel at first court appearance. Findings have relevance for research, practice, and other criminal justice stakeholders.

Sub Unit

• Area VII. Criminal Justice Policy and Practice / 35. Prosecution and the Courts

Individual Presentations

• Examining the Effectiveness of Holistic Defense in Practice - Cynthia G. Lee, National Center for State Courts

• The Effects of Holistic Defense on Case Outcomes: A Natural Experiment in the Bronx - Paul Heaton, University of Pennsylvania Law School

• Patient or Client: The Experience of Defendants with Mental Health Disorders and Their Defense Attorneys - James Parsons, Vera Institute of Justice

• Counsel at First Appearance in Court: Defense Lawyers' Roles in Pretrial Justice - Alissa Pollitz Worden, University at Albany-SUNY

Chair

• Linda Truitt, National Institute of Justice, US DOJ