Frank Russo Shares his Expertise
with the Public Defender's Office
St. Petersburg Lawyer /Clearwater Attorney Consults Public Defender
The Honorable Robert H. Dillinger, Public Defender for Florida's Sixth Judicial Circuit, extends his thanks to Frank Russo for a seminar presented to his staff of attorneys. Since his election, Dillinger has been widely praised by the legal community for his continuous efforts to improve the quality of representation provided by the seventy-nine lawyers in his office. Dillinger has also been the recipient of numerous awards for service to the community, including the Nelson Poynter Award from the St. Petersburg Times.
In 1963, the United States Supreme Court landmark decision of Gideon v. Wainwright, 372 U.S. 335 (1963) led to the Florida Legislature's creation of the Office of the Public Defender. Chapter 27 of the Florida Statutes thereafter insured that all "indigent" persons facing criminal charges be provided with effective assistance of legal counsel.
As the United States Supreme Court recognized in that case, the need for experienced legal representation in a criminal case is critical to the fair administration of justice. Relying on the wisdom of an opinion authored by Justice Sutherland in 1932, the Court found that these words expressed the idea best:
"The right to be heard would be, in many cases, of little avail if it did not comprehend the right to be heard by counsel. Even the intelligent and educated layman has small and sometimes no skill in the science of law. If charged with crime, he is incapable, generally, of determining for himself whether the indictment is good or bad. He is unfamiliar with the rules of evidence. Left without the aid of counsel he may be put on trial without a proper charge, and convicted upon incompetent evidence, or evidence irrelevant to the issue or otherwise inadmissible. He lacks both the skill and knowledge adequately to prepare his defense, even though he have a perfect one. He requires the guiding hand of counsel at every step in the proceedings against him. Without it, though he be not guilty, he faces the danger of conviction because he does not know how to establish his innocence." 287 U.S., at 68-69.
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