The Department of Public Advocacy just informed the Franklin Circuit Court that it will run out of money and will be forced to withdraw from all cases. DPA seeks an immediate ruling on its summary judgment motion.

From the press release:

A motion to dissolve the injunction was filed this week in Franklin Circuit Court in the declaratory judgment action originally filed last summer by the Department of Public Advocacy (DPA), the Louisville and Jefferson County Public Defender Corporation, and private attorneys who handle conflict cases for indigent defendants. The motion is set to be heard on March 9, 2009 in the Franklin Circuit Court, Judge Wingate presiding.

The action was filed in June of 2008 as public defenders began their service reductions in the face of inadequate resources and excessive caseloads. The service reductions were an effort to stay responsibly within their budgeted funds. The declaratory judgment action seeks to clarify the legal and ethical parameters under circumstances in which defender caseloads are so high that professional responsibilities and effective assistance of counsel for poor people across Kentucky are compromised and threatened.

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It is now estimated that DPA will run out of money in May 2009, and then be unable to provide any representation whatsoever in any Court. DPA is asking the Court to dissolve the injunction and permit it to withdraw from all cases when it runs out of money.

DPA has no control over its caseload. Public defenders cannot limit the volume of their caseloads. They must handle all those that the police arrest, the prosecutors charge, and the courts determine cannot afford counsel. Like the Corrections Department, defenders provide services to a population that is determined by someone else.

Meanwhile, we can give millions to NASCAR and even more millions to employers who create low-paying jobs that barely allow Kentuckians to get by.