December 2009 hearings

On Monday, December 14, 2009, there were two events on public defense reform both at Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan. Congressman John Conyers convened a U.S. House Judiciary Committee Briefing on Solutions to the Indigent Defense Crisis in the morning and the Michigan House Judiciary Committee held a hearing on public defense reform legislation.

Thank you to everyone who spoke, submitted written testimony, or attended! Your presence was critical to show the need for public defense reform in Michigan and the need for federal support for Michigan’s reform efforts.

Click on the links below to read testimony from the following individuals and organizations.

Norman Lefstein, Professor of Law and Dean Emeritus, Indiana University School of Law - Indianapolis

Robin Dahlberg, American Civil Liberties Union

Dawn Van Hoek, chief deputy director, State Appellate Defender Office

Richard McLellan

Regina Daniels Thomas

Margaret Sind Raben, president, Criminal Defense Attorneys of Michigan

James Neuhard, director, State Appellate Defender Office

Khalilah Spencer, chair of legal redress committee, Detroit Branch NAACP

Peter Psarouthakis, legislative chairman and immediate past president, Michigan Council of Private Investigators

Ruth Harlin, sister of Eddie Joe Lloyd

Denise Harris, on behalf of Mary Engle, Prison Fellowship Michigan

Randy Block, director, Michigan Unitarian Universalist Social Justice Network

Richard Nodel, president, Jewish Community Relations Council of Metropolitan Detroit

Robert Ackerman

Elizabeth Arnovits, Michigan Council on Crime and Delinquency

Fern Ettinger, chair of state public affairs committee, National Council of Jewish Women, Greater Detroit Section

Mark Fancher, staff attorney - racial justice project, American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan

Susan Herman, director, Michigan Jewish Conference

Joan Howarth, dean, Michigan State University College of Law

Matthew Kaley, president, Michigan Juvenile Detention Association

David Moran, co-director, Michigan Innocence Clinic

William Schma, retired judge, Kalamazoo County Circuit Court

Maxine Thome, governmental relations director, National Association of Social Workers - Michigan Chapter

Francisco Villarruel, professor, Department of Family and Child Ecology at Michigan State University