Effects of Massachusetts public defenders strike felt across state as advocates fight for higher wages
Private lawyers with the Massachusetts Bar Advocate Program say they will not take new court-appointed cases until they get a pay raise.
The base hourly rate for court-appointed lawyers in Massachusetts is $65. In Rhode Island, it's $112, in New Hampshire, $125, and in Maine, it's $150 per hour.
"It's woefully inadequate. No one's asking to be paid what private attorneys get paid. I have a private practice," said attorney and Bar Advocate Sean Delaney. "We're just looking for something that's fair and reasonable."
The effects of the strike are already being felt in Massachusetts courtrooms. A Boston man accused of grabbing a police officer's gun and shooting himself in the foot was told by a judge that he wouldn't be receiving a court-appointed lawyer.
"Sir, I have to explain to you that the lawyers are on strike, so I can't appoint a counselor for you, and we're going to set this up for a hearing on dangerousness five days from now," the judge said.
"We support our private attorneys and agree that they should be paid more for the essential work they do," said Anthony Benedetti, the head of the Committee for Public Counsel Services, the state's full-time public defender's office.
"The private bar advocates cover approximately 80 percent of the cases in the Commonwealth and CPCS covers approximately 20 percent," attorney and Bar Advocate Jennifer O'Brien said.
Some, like O'Brien, worry that fewer younger lawyers will do this work if nothing changes.
"With the current pay and new attorneys getting out of law school with big student loans, they don't want to sign up for $65 an hour," O'Brien said.