The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) issued a report on May 9 that determined there is a need to educate grantees and public defenders of the availability of Byrne Justice Assistance Grant Program (Byrne JAG) funds to be used for indigent defense.
Named in honor of New York City Police Officer Edward Byrnes who was murdered in 1988, the Byrne JAG Program distributes funds to various grantees working in the area of criminal justice. In the past, most of the funding has been allocated to law enforcement groups and prosecutors. Last year a Department of Justice audit discovered that some Byrne JAG funds were misspent, or not used at all. (See Reentry Central News Got Funding? DOJ Wants to Make Sure It is Spent Appropriately, May 25, 2011.)
Recognizing that indigent defendants often receive poor legal assistance, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder announced in February that the Justice Department would be offering two grants totaling $2.4 million to study obstacles to indigent offenders receiving competent legal services, and to discover easy those barriers can be eliminated. Holder stated that the grants would support on-the-ground efforts to help assure that defendants have access to counsel at the earliest stages of criminal proceedings; provide support for members of the private bar in representing indigent defendants; reduce caseloads; and support oversight of public defender and assigned counsel systems. The funding for these grants is separate from the money available through the Byrnes JAG Program. (See Reentry Central News, Eric Holder Announces Grants to Improve Indigent Defense Services, February 2, 2012.)
According to The Constitution Project less than one percent of Byrne JAG funding is allocated for indigent defense. The GAO claims that 54 percent of respondents to their survey admitted that they had no knowledge that the funds were available for to provide a defense for their indigent clients.
The GAO report offered several recommendations, including that the Department of Justice do more to promote awareness that funding is available to grantees for indigent defense, and that data should be collected on that funding.
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