Thread by @radleybalko

The federal gov procures office space for DC’s prosecutors and public defenders. When prosecutors needed a new lease in 2017, the feds limited bids to 4 blocks from court. Now public defenders need a new lease. The radius for those bids: 1.1 miles.

/1

washingtonpost.com/opinions/2019/…

It may not seem like much, but defense attorneys say a move a mile or more from the court will have a massive impact on indigent clients. It would also undermine part of what makes D.C.’s public defender office one of the best in the country. /2

The GSA (which oversees all of this) is not known to be an overly partisan or political agency, but they seem to have either ignored or disregarded the concerns of the PD’s office, as well as the two other agencies (parole and pretrial services) currently housed with the PD. /3

The GSA seems oddly determined to get all 3 city agencies out of the current building, despite no complaints from the agencies. (Cost doesn’t appear to be the driving factor either, since the owner of the current building was barred from even bidding on the new lease.) /4

If the office is moved far from the court, the new lease will be for 20 years. So the harmful effects on D.C.’s indigent people and the PD’s office will last at least a generation. /5

It means less effective representation, will hamper experienced PDs’ ability to mentor new lawyers, and make it harder for poor people to get to court on time. That means they’ll need to go to court more often to resolve charges, more fines, and likely more arrest warrants. /6

It’s a good example of how seemingly mundane decisions can add to the burden and despair of the people churned through the system. We should want those facing criminal charges to have their day in court, pay their debt if guilty, and move on with their lives. /7

Instead, we tend to make it all as painful and difficult as possible, with thousands of little cuts, many inflicted inadvertently.

As @JRapping put it, it isn’t that a decision like this hurts indigent people by design. It’s that indigent people aren’t considered at all.

/end