So... you’re what kind of lawyer? Assistant Federal Public Defender. So, you do what ...? Let’s start at the beginning. In 1963, the Supreme Court ruled that anyone threatened with the loss of their liberty by their government was entitled to a competent lawyer. Not just people who had the money to buy a lawyer. Thus began the modern public defender system. Counties, states, and the federal government all have their own version of lawyers paid for by the public to represent criminal defendants. The District of South Dakota has three offices and the District of North Dakota has two.
As a federal public defender, it’s my job to protect my clients from the government. I personally think of it as this: if our government wants to take someone’s liberty, it should do it the right way and for the right reasons. It is a misconception that the system is set up to let innocent people go. The system is set up to make the government prove its case. A small but important distinction. Being a public defender is about the law and the evidence, but it’s also about being a social worker, a therapist, a secretary, a sounding board, a liaison for the family, a mental health specialist, a substance abuse guru, and an advocate for people no one wants to hear from.
The most frequent question I get asked is, “How can you represent those people?” If you take only one thing from this, please know that those people are just like us. They are humans who have kids who grow out of shoes too quickly and aging parents who need constant care, humans who worry about how to keep food on the table and if they have time to cheer for their favorite sports teams. I can promise you that people are all pretty much the same. A huge part of my job is to help people see beyond the mistakes that landed them in the seat next to me. No one is as bad as your local news makes them sound. I promise.
Over 45% of federal inmates report having mental health struggles. Nationwide, 65% of inmates report substance abuse issues. Pine Ridge routinely ranks as one of the poorest areas in the nation, and many of my clients either have a parent who has been through the federal system or has been a crime victim themselves. There are complex social, educational, economic, health, and emotional factors that shape all my clients' lives.
The District Court of South Dakota is surprisingly busy for covering a relatively small population. In 2019, 986 cases were filed in the district. That number dipped only slightly due to COVID. South Dakota has been in the top five of all district courts nationwide for the number of trials conducted (there are 94 districts!). Here in Rapid City, well over half of our cases come from Indian Country, an antiquated legal term meaning reservations within our district. Typically, 1/3 of the total number of Indian Country filings in South Dakota are from the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. At the federal level, we represent people charged with failure to pay income tax, to people who sell mortgage cattle, to people who commit internet-based crimes against children, all the way to large scale drug distributors and murderers. Your federal government has jurisdiction over an enormous variety of crimes (thanks to the Commerce Cause which you can google if you need a refresher).
We work cases from the initial appearance (despite what you read in the comments on Facebook, no, no one pleads guilty at an initial appearance) to trial if that is the client’s choice. Trial work is my absolute favorite thing because it’s participatory! So much of what a public defender does is behind the scenes and, in trial, the community gets to come in and see what is going on in their local courthouse. It’s always educational to talk to potential jurors and get different perspectives. Yes, this is a shameless plug for you to honor your summons and come see me for jury selection.
Approximately 90% of federal defendants end up pleading guilty, which means a large part of my job is mitigation for sentencing. This is the one opportunity a defendant has to explain how their life, their struggles, addictions, and trauma, led them to what happened. It’s an honor to get to be the person articulating that story. Any custody sentence at the federal level is served in the Bureau of Prisons. A person must do 85% of their time
in custody. There is no early release at a federal level. And no, it isn’t as fun as Orange Is the New Black makes it look. Inmates have to pay a substantial amount to call home or buy soap that doesn’t make them itch. Some months, it’s a choice between one or the other. When a defendant finishes their sentence, they come out on supervised release. A United States Probation Officer will then enforce additional conditions of sentence like treatment or where you can live. It costs the taxpayers $39,000 a year to incarcerate someone and only $4,400 to supervise them and offer them rehabilitative programming.
As a lawyer, I have to say this article is not a reflection of the beliefs of my whole office. But I can also tell you that I’m always around if you ever have questions or want to know how things really work. Come find me at Lost Cabin or at Sol Vibe or even my office (it’s in the old Sanford’s Restaurant!). My job is truly a privilege and I’m always here to talk about it.