From Sixth Amendment Center:
The United States District Court for the Western District of Arkansas decided last month that indigent defendants have a constitutional right to appointed counsel during bail hearings at first appearances. The case, Farella v. Anglin, brought a class action on behalf of all pretrial detainees who have or will appear before District Judge Anglin of Benton County for a bail determination, and who are indigent and without counsel. While Judge Anglin is specifically named as a defendant, the decision ripples to all Benton County bail hearings.
Abigail Farella, one of the named plaintiffs, was brought in front of Judge Anglin two days after her arrest for her first appearance (known in Arkansas as a “Rule 8.1 hearing”). Her bond was set at $10,000 cash or corporate surety without an attorney. After determining bail, the judge found her indigent and appointed counsel. Ms. Farella remained in jail for over five weeks because she could not pay her bond. As a result of her pretrial detention, Ms. Farella lost her job, house, and car. The lack of counsel at Rule 8.1 hearings is the norm in Benton County.
The right to counsel attaches at the first appearance
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Rothgery v. Gillespie County that a person’s Sixth Amendment right to an attorney begins the moment that right attaches. Attachment, the Court explained, is the first appearance before a judicial officer where the defendant “learns the charge against him and his liberty is subject to restriction” – this “marks the initiation of adversary judicial proceedings.” Continue reading >>>
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