Defenseless in Georgia

In the last Equal Justice Edition, I talked about the bankrupting of the Georgia public defense program due to one high-profile capital case. Though the Nichols case is over, the system is still a wreck. One capital defendant in Georgia, Jamie Ryan Weis, has been without a lawyer for eight months as he awaits trial. Weis had counsel earlier, but the state ran out of money to pay the lawyers. With the help of Stephen Bright of the Southern Center for Human Rights, Weis has sued for representation.

Leaving a defendant without a lawyer for even a short period of time is unconscionable, and this much time without representation, while the prosecution continues to build a case, is totally unacceptable. Even Robert Blecker, New York Law School professor and death penalty supporter, has voiced his concern about the situation:

"When it comes to the death penalty, money should never be the issue," Professor Blecker said. "In this story, money seems to have become the issue, and that's what's so troubling."

Read more about the case in the New York Times article "Long Held in Capital Case, Man Sues to Get a Lawyer"