Defending the Poor During the Downturn: The Effect of the Great Recession on Public Defense

• In Event: Policy Panel: Legal Services for the Indigent – Local Governance

Abstract

In state criminal courts, public defense programs are funded primarily through local and state tax revenues. In states that devolve this responsibility to counties, there are significant disparities in program budgets: as is the case with spending on public schools and public welfare, indigent defense expenditures are shaped by county wealth, demography, caseloads, and political environments. In this paper, we investigate another potential dimension of inequity, the effect of economic downturns on counties’ capacities to fund defense programs. Using data on public defense expenditures from 2002 to 2012 in upstate New York, we test the hypotheses that fluctuations in counties’ tax revenues and unemployment rates during the Great Recession exacerbated existing disparities in defense budgets. We suggest that counties that suffered most from the Recession experienced both increases in caseloads (due to more poverty and unemployment) and decreases in revenues, while facing greater demands for other public goods (such as social services). As a result, these counties’ public defense budgets may have shrunk, even as the need for representation increased. We hope this paper contributes not only to the growing body of research on public defense funding, but also the broader literature on the effect of economic instability on local governments’ ability to provide public services.

Authors

• Alissa Pollitz-Worden, University at Albany, SUNY

• Andrew L.B. Davies, University at Albany, SUNY / NYS Indigent Legal Services