Dear Editor,

We, a group of local attorneys with over a century of combined experience, wanted to write about an issue of concern in our local Superior Court 3 judicial race, because most of us serve as public defenders in the Kosciusko court system in addition to our private law practices.

For those who may not know, a public defender is an attorney who is appointed to represent individuals who are not able to afford an attorney — a right guaranteed by both the federal and Indiana constitutions. Our courts have long interpreted that for this right to actually mean something, a warm body with a law degree is not enough. In McMann v. Richardson, the US Supreme Court stated it this way: “defendants facing felony charges are entitled to the effective assistance of competent counsel.”

To ensure that defendants receive effective representation by competent counsel, our courts require minimum qualifying criteria before a lawyer is able to be appointed as a public defender in felony cases. Any lawyer fresh out of law school is qualified to serve as a public defender on misdemeanor and level six felonies. This because misdemeanors are punished with fines and days in jail, while level 6 felonies are punished by, at most, a two and one-half years. As the severity of the crime increases, meriting harsher punishments, the requirements to serve as a public defender become more rigorous.

To serve as a public defender on level 5 felonies an attorney needs one year of experience as an attorney or experience in three criminal trials. For felonies level 4 to 1, an attorney must have additional time and felony trial experience to be appointed.

Court 3 handles, among other matters, felony criminal cases, including felonies as high as Level 4, such as DUI cases involving death. While a judge does not have to meet the same qualifications by law, you, the voter, may think it wise that the judge deciding these Level 4 felony cases is at least as qualified as the attorneys he or she appoints to represent that Court’s defendants.

Three of the candidates in this election are so qualified: (in alphabetical order) Bishop, Grossnickle, and McGrath.  The only candidate who could not serve as a public defender in the court to which he is applying to serve as Judge is Miner.

Respectfully submitted,

John Barrett
Helen Berry
Antony Garza
Travis McConnell
Travis Neff
Everett Newman
Carissa Nolin