Criminal defendants are being held without lawyers in Mass. as bar advocates refuse new cases
In a statement Monday evening, the association said the growing number of unrepresented people in Massachusetts, which it says has grown to exceed 240 in just Boston and Middlesex County, represents a crisis.
As of last week, roughly 40 people in Boston were being held in custody without a lawyer, and more than 150 were unrepresented, the association said. In Middlesex County, which includes Cambridge, 16 people are being held without lawyers and 90 people accused of crimes are awaiting a court-appointed attorney, according to the statement.
Read more: A right to an attorney? Court-appointed lawyers are refusing cases in Mass. over low pay
It was not immediately clear what the statewide totals were, but the association indicated there are 'many others who remain locked in custody with no one as their voice.'
The association's president, Shira Diner, said the numbers reflected a 'full-blown constitutional breakdown.'
'The right to counsel is not a luxury. It is a bedrock principle of our justice system, guaranteed by the Sixth Amendment and by Article 12 of the Massachusetts Declaration of Rights,' Diner said. 'When people are jailed without lawyers, the system ceases to be just — or constitutional.'
Bar advocates are independent defense attorneys who represent those who can not afford lawyers. They are not part of the state's public defender agency, the Committee for Public Counsel Services.
Those attorneys have been refusing to take on new cases amid a pay dispute. The association says bar advocates in Massachusetts are paid far less than those in neighboring states.
'The unsustainable pay structure has led to an exodus of experienced attorneys and an inability to recruit new ones — with the result that hundreds of accused individuals find themselves in legal limbo," the association wrote in a statement.
Read more: Bar advocate revolt over low pay expected to balloon across the state
Anyone in custody for more than seven days without representation can be released under state law. If a lawyer is not assigned in that timeframe, courts are either forced to violate a person's constitutional right to an attorney or release them without due process, the association said.
'People accused of crimes are sitting in jail cells without a lawyer,' Diner continued. 'Others are missing crucial opportunities to gather necessary evidence and are left with nothing but uncertainty.'
A spokesperson for the trial courts said the state's court system has been 'in communication' with CPCS 'in an effort to reduce disruptions due to the work stoppage by Bar Advocates.'
Bar advocates handle about 80% of criminal cases for defendants who can't afford attorneys in Massachusetts courts.
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