"Any person haled into court, who is too poor to hire a lawyer, cannot be assured a fair trial unless counsel is provided for him. This seems to us to be an obvious truth."

Gideon v. Wainwright

House Bill 1: Changes involving Court Costs and Bail

Effective October 16, 2009, Court Costs imposed per R.C. 2949.091 are increasing and a new $25.00 surcharge is levied when a person posts bail. The links below contain a summary, the new law, and a FAQ on this issue.

Summary and Bill Text from HB1
Frequently Asked Questions Revised 10-15-2009
Matrix of Court Costs and Fees

For questions or more information, please contact: John Alge

Public Defender News

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Clemency requests piling up

(The Columbus Dispatch © 11/15/2009)

When her father went to prison nearly 10 years ago, Amberley Tapp was a precocious girl of 7 with hair of golden ringlets and a sunny disposition living in a nice home in Delaware, Ohio.

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Ohio Ethics Commission Advisory Opinion

The Ohio Ethics Commission has released a written advisory opinion that a member of a county public defender commission is generally prohibited from acting as appointed counsel to criminal defendants in the same county.

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The Ohio Public Defender’s Wrongful Conviction Project

The Ohio Public Defender is attempting to fill a gap in the system by developing the state’s first program to focus exclusively on the majority of wrongful conviction claims that do not involve DNA evidence.

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Remarks as Prepared for Delivery by Attorney General Eric Holder at the Vera Institute of Justice's Third Annual Justice Address

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Executive Summary from The Innocence Project

•	Reevaluating Lineups: Why Witnesses Make Mistakes

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Ohio Courts Statistical Summary from The Supreme Court of Ohio

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DNA Reform Bill

►	Governor supports DNA access bill (The Columbus Dispatch © 8/13/2009) A year ago this week, Robert McClendon walked from a stark prison yard as a free man, no longer condemned for a child rape that DNA testing showed he didn't commit.

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Adam Walsh Act

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Cases Accepted for Review in the Ohio Supreme Court

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Senate Bill 10 - Resources

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Congressional Hearing on Adam Walsh Act

On March 10, 2009, the U.S. House Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Crime held a hearing on the barriers to states’ compliance with the federal Adam Walsh Act.

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Rule 16 Reform

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Rule 16 as published for comment by the Supreme Court

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Supreme Court Seeks Comments on Rules of Practice and Procedure

The Supreme Court of Ohio will accept public comment until Nov. 18 on amendments to the annual update to the Rules of Practice and Procedure, which were recommended by the Supreme Court Commission on the Rules of Practice and Procedure.

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Book and Gavel Image

Death Row Updates

►	Ohio: 1 lethal injection drug should end lawsuit (The Associated Press © 11/14/2009) The state's decision to replace a three-drug lethal injection with a powerful dose of one anesthetic is raising the possibility of what may have seemed unthinkable not so long ago: a truce in the long-running legal challenges to death penalty injection across the country.
►	Statement from State Public Defender Tim Young, regarding today’s announcement that DRC is revising Ohio’s execution protocol
►	DRC announces new execution protocol
►	6th Circuit Granted Reynolds a Stay

›› More: News | Updates