As county officials honored Gideon Day—a recognition of the Mar. 18 1963 Supreme Court decision in Gideon v. Wainwright, which created the right to a lawyer regardless of the ability to pay for one—dozens of audience members voiced concerns with aspects of the county’s recent implementation of Counsel at First Appearance, or CAFA.
“A week late and a lot of dollars short... Signing this proclamation today is a perfect example of how this court exactly feels about indigent defense, a sparkling celebration when creation happens, but an afterthought once the glitter fades,” said Rochelle Vasquez, an attorney in the public defender’s office.
What they’re saying
Members of the Travis County Public Defender’s Office told commissioners that the initial investment wasn't enough, as staff pay remains significantly lower than similar positions in Central Texas and statewide.
This dynamic inherently devalues the nature of the work of staff at the public defenders office, according to a news release from the public defender’s office.
“The future of indigent defense in Travis County is kneecapped when we cannot retain and develop great attorneys,” said Amalia Beckner, one of the county’s public defenders.
Some context
CAFA—representation regardless of a person's ability to pay for a lawyer during the post-arrest evaluation and bail-setting during magistration—in Austin and Travis County has moved through stops and starts in recent years.
The lack of full-time legal services during bail hearings led one arrestee to sue the county this spring over its "two-tiered" magistration system that he, and others, said results in disparate legal outcomes for those who can and can't afford early representation.
County officials officially earmarked $15.5 million toward CAFA during their fiscal year 2024-25 budget process.
The first $5.8 million in county funding was doled out in October, paying for 43 new positions that support CAFA, including defense attorneys, clerks, legal secretaries and translators.
Travis County commissioners allocated another $8.2 million in funding Jan. 28 for the implementation of a second shift of legal representation services.
Travis County Budget Director Travis Gatlin told commissioners in January that with 86 new full time employees being hired, this is the largest commitment the county has ever made in the fastest time possible.
Geoff Burkhart, the county’s executive for Community Legal Services said the county was experiencing growing pains, highlighting that the initiative is one of only a few in the state to offer legal representation during magistration.
“We are one of only seven counties out of 254 that has Counsel At First Appearance in Texas. So unfortunately, we're still a little bit of a rarity,” Burkhart said. "... It's my belief that we're going to have the most robust Council first appearance program in the state.”
The department is actively working through salary competitiveness and case workload, Burkhart told commissioners.
The action taken
In partnership with the county’s budget department, Burkhart said his office has plans to use leftover funds from unfilled positions in the public defender’s office to raise starting salaries and address internal pay disparities across county departments.
Next month, Legal Services is expected to bring an additional funding request for $132,000 in order to close the remaining salary gaps between positions at the public defender’s office, the county attorney’s office, and the district attorney’s office. This funding is also intended to provide room for career ladder raises.
Even so, Burkhart said Travis County still remains uncompetitive compared to the state's five largest counties.
“What we're talking about is bumping up [entry level attornies] to an $85,500 salary—that doesn't get us to the $93,000 starting salary in Harris County. Dallas County, likewise, has higher starting salaries,” he said. “So we still have a little bit of a gap there.”
Quote of note
“We have a long list of important things that we’ve got to do, that are all important to believe in. [But] we’ve got a limited pot of money that we have to make work,” Gatlin said. “We hear you, and we hear everybody that's talking—it resonates with us. We'll continue to do our very best to address it the best we can... it doesn't mean we can solve every issue, but I think we've made progress.
