New Article: Nia Prater, 106 Cases, Three Jobs, One Lawyer The city’s public defenders are struggling., Intelligencer, (Apr. 7, 2023). Excerpt below:
On a brisk Tuesday morning while most are still asleep, Eugene Toussaint is in the gym by 6 a.m. before a marathon day as a criminal-defense attorney with the Legal Aid Society, the city’s largest provider of public defense.
It’s a 40-minute drive from his home in Sunnyside, Queens to the office in Kew Gardens where, between sips from a large Dunkin coffee on his desk, he waits for a pair of clients he’s scheduled to meet. The first meeting at 9:30 a.m. is brief, with Toussaint pointing to his calendar on his computer as he patiently explains to the client the next steps of the case. As the clock creeps closer to 10 a.m., it’s clear that the second client is a no-show. Toussaint takes it in stride — it spares him precious time he can’t afford to lose. With a full day in court ahead of him, arriving just a few minutes late can set his day back by hours.
Poverty Law 