The Missouri General Assembly has completed a budget that uses federal stimulus money to forestall cuts made to the state’s judiciary system. As a result, both the judiciary and the state’s public defender system will see slight increases to their ...

Tagged with: budget General Assembly public defenders

The Missouri House has brought a package of projects back from the legislative graveyard on Monday, a move that resuscitates $2 million aimed at helping the public defender system. The House unexpectedly defeated a bill last Thursday that featured a ...

Tagged with: Allen Icet public defenders stimulus

The Missouri House has brought a package of projects back from the legislative graveyard, resuscitating $2 million aimed at helping the public defender system. The House unexpectedly defeated a bill last week that featured a number of projects funded with ...

Tagged with: public defenders stimulus

As the state prepares to complete next year's budget, Attorney General Chris Koster's thoughts have also turned to money - both for his lawyers and for the state as a whole. Koster on Thursday said he intends to increase pay for entry-level lawyers in the attorney general's office to $42,500, a 23 percent increase from the current $32,900. Koster said current pay levels are less than those of public defenders and many prosecutor's offices. "Bringing this office into something akin to basic economic parity is my No. 1 priority," Koster said Thursday.

Tagged with: budget Chris Koster Jay Nixon Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association public defenders

A legislative package that included projects funded with federal stimulus dollars was defeated on the floor of the Missouri House, a development that puts a $2 million allotment for the public defender system in jeopardy. The Missouri House quickly put ...

Tagged with: Allen Icet budget public defenders stimulus

A House committee passed without opposition measures meant to combat a heavy caseload in the state’s public defender system. Sen. Jack Goodman’s legislation, among other things, would allow the Missouri Public Defender Commission to seek out methods of controlling their ...

Tagged with: Jack Goodman Jay Nixon Missouri Court of Appeals Western District Missouri Public Defender Commission public defenders Tim Jones

Hundreds of alcohol-related offenders in Missouri have had the chance to strap on an alcohol-monitoring ankle bracelet and avoid jail time. But as the state considers expanding its use, lawyers are questioning the device’s accuracy and its accessibility for the poor. The ankle bracelets continuously monitor offenders’ blood alcohol levels by taking readings of their skin perspiration. On a case-by-case basis, prosecutors and probation officers across the state have recommended the devices as a condition of probation or bond for the past few years.

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The U.S. Supreme Court won’t review the appeals filed by a couple of Missouri death row inmates. Michael Taylor was serving a life sentence at the Potosi Correctional Center for the murder and rape of a high school classmate when ...

Tagged with: Habeas Petition public defenders U.S. Supreme Court

Alarm bells are sounding within the state court system over an early draft of the state budget. The Missouri House gave first-round approval on Wednesday to 13 bills making up the state’s budget, with a final vote expected late Thursday. ...

Tagged with: budget John Burnett Missouri Supreme Court public defenders

Alarm bells are sounding over an early draft of the state budget cutting funding for the state’s judiciary system. Yesterday, the Missouri House gave first-round approval to 13 bills making up the state’s budget. One bill debated includes funding for ...

Tagged with: budget Missouri House Missouri Supreme Court public defenders

It’s only fitting that an appeals court would issue two opinions in a double jeopardy case. The Missouri Court of Appeals in St. Louis handed down its second opinion in State v. Bohlen on Tuesday. “Only the remedy has been ...

Tagged with: Double Jeopardy Missouri Court of Appeals Eastern District public defenders