Since it was created in 1967, the New Jersey Office of the Public Defender has undergone dramatic changes that have led to its current form as a multi-faceted legal resource serving as a voice for those who otherwise would have none in New Jersey's courts.

Founded on July 1, 1967 to fulfill the traditional role of providing legal counsel to indigent defendants charged with indictable offenses, the office now performs not only that function but also provides attorneys to represent children and parents in abuse and neglect cases, provides constitutionally mandated representation for indigent clients at voluntary and involuntary psychiatric commitment hearings, and offers dispute-resolution services that can help parties embroiled in civil litigation reach out-of-court settlements, saving millions of dollars in attorneys fees and court time. For information on the Public Defender Office's statutory authority, click here: N.J.S.A. 2A-1,et.seq.

Prior to 1967, legal representation for indigent defendants, as guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution, was handled in New Jersey on a case-by-case basis. But there were inherent problems in this system of appointing private counsel to handle such cases. Lawyers often were unable to provide as thorough a defense as possible, and some who were appointed to represent people facing serious charges were unfamiliar with criminal law.

Though the idea of a centralized Office of the Public Defender to cover the entire state had been bandied about for years, the concept picked up steam when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Gideon v. Wainwright that a state had the obligation to provide an attorney for every indigent criminal defendant, a decision that placed an increasingly heavy burden on private attorneys.

That was followed by a New Jersey Supreme Court ruling in State v. Rush that held it was no longer proper to expect a lawyer to provide services for criminal defendants without getting paid. The court suggested establishing a statewide Public Defender system as a remedy, and the state Bar Association recommended a structure similar to the one that exists today. Thus, Chapter 43, Laws of 1967, was enacted, providing all necessary services and facilities for such representation, including investigation and case-preparation for court-assigned defendants.

In its criminal-defense function, the New Jersey Office of the Public Defender not only provides legal counsel at the Superior Court level in each of the state's 21 counties, but also handles appeals and other ancillary legal proceedings. The first centralized system of its kind in the United States, New Jersey's Office of the Public Defender has served for more than three decades as a model, and continues to be contacted today by states considering switching to a statewide system.

The office provides attorneys for indigent criminal defendants in both the adult and juvenile levels of Superior Court, as the result of expanded jurisdiction called for in late-1967. The attorneys are assigned to 22 regional Public Defender office. Essex County, because of its size and heavy caseloads, has separate offices for adult and juvenile representation.

The primary goal of the office, as set forth by the Legislature, is to ensure that the constitutional guarantees of counsel in criminal cases are met. It provides for an established system by which no innocent person will be convicted because of an inability to afford an attorney and where the guilty will be convicted only after a fair trial. A secondary goal of the statewide system is to spare county and local property-taxpayers the expense of legal representation for indigent defendants.

OPD STRUCTURE

The Office is administered by the New Jersey Public Defender, who is appointed to a five-year term by the Governor, with the advice and consent of the Senate. Currently heading the agency is Yvonne Smith Segars of Ridgewood, Bergen County, a veteran public defender who has been a leading force in the creation of special Drug Courts throughout the state. Those courts provide non-violent drug offenders the opportunity to serve an intensively supervised probation period instead of a prison sentence during which they are given help to kick their drug habits and give them the tools to avoid further contact with the criminal justice system.

Legislation passed in 1974 put the Office of the Public Defender under the newly created Department of the Public Advocate, a move that led to the creation of new programs dealing with specific criminal and civil issues. Among the non-criminal sections of the agency is the Law Guardian Unit, which provides representation to children who are victims of abuse and neglect. It also conducts institutional abuse investigations at residential facilities, group homes and day-care centers operated by the Division of Youth and Family Services (DYFS). The Law Guardian Unit is currently directed by James Louis.

In mid-1999, as part of the state's move to satisfy federal legislation geared toward speeding the adoption of children placed in foster care, the Office began representing children in so-called "Title 30" cases. In these cases, the parental rights of biological parents are sought to be terminated if it becomes clear that those parents are unwilling or unable to properly care for their children. As part of that new mission, the Office also created the Parental Representation Unit, which provides attorneys for parents in Title 30 cases. The Law Guardian Unit and Parental Representation Unit are kept administratively separate to avoid any appearance of a conflict in Title 30 cases.

Legislation approved in mid-1994, which led to the phase-out of the Department of the Public Advocate and transferred the Public Defender to the Department of State, resulted in the agency assuming oversight for the Division of Mental Health Advocacy and the Division of Advocacy for the Developmentally Disabled. Together, they are known as the Division of Mental Health and Guardianship Advocacy, which is under the direction of Patrick Reilly. The division provides constitutionally mandated representation for indigent clients at voluntary and involuntary commitment hearings. It also provides guardianship representation for clients of the Division of Developmental Disabilities and, most recently, has been called upon to provide attorneys for sex offenders facing civil commitment hearings at the end of their prison sentences..

Yet another component of the Office not related to criminal defense is the Office of Dispute Settlement, which offers mediation services to keep civil suits from going to trial, thereby saving thousands, sometimes millions, in costs for the Superior Court system. Headed by Eric Max, the office includes two attorneys and three mediation specialists who bring together opponents in all manner of civil suits in the hope of settlements. The office's origins go back to a low-income housing dispute in Newark in the 1970s. Established first as a neighborhood justice center in that dispute, the concept eventually became part of the Office of the Public Advocate, then was brought under the Public Defender's auspices in the 1994 realignment.

OPD CASES

The OPD central offices, located in the Hughes Justice Complex in Trenton, house the Public Defender and Assistant Public Defenders, who coordinate work in the trial regions and the Appellate Section, as well as overseeing the special sections.

The current statewide staff includes attorneys, investigators, appellate attorneys and hundreds of support staff members. The Office also maintains a "pool" of private attorneys who can be called upon to accept cases that, because of conflicts or other reasons, staff attorneys cannot handle.

The Public Defender formulates overall policy and directs administration of all programs. Each regional office is headed by a deputy public defender, who supervises caseloads, maintains private-attorney pools and supervises reports to the main office on case dispositions. Assistant deputy public defenders, those who try the cases, are assigned to each region based on the caseload in that county. Along with many administrative duties, they interview witnesses, visit defendants who are incarcerated and render assistance in court.

Serving alongside the attorneys in each region is a corps of highly trained investigators, who often handle the interviewing of clients and witnesses. They also contribute to the cost-effectiveness of the office by providing in-house expertise on such things as polygraph tests, ballistics, fingerprinting and arson and narcotics investigations. Many are former police officers.

Despite having regional Public Defender staffs outnumbered by prosecutors' staffs by at least 2-to-one ratios in all 21 counties, the office has maintained consistently high case-disposition rates.

OPD BILLING

The Office of the Public Defender, which now is an "in but not of" agency in the Treasury Department, is obligated to seek reimbursement from clients through a billing and lien system. It also imposes up-front administrative fees of $50 to newly assigned clients who can afford the payment. The legislative measure establishing the office states that whether the indigent defendant is to be served by staff attorneys or trained pool counsel, the same level of service must be rendered as if the attorneys were privately retained.

PUBLIC DEFENDERS

Stanley C. Van Ness

Joseph H. Rodriguez

In 1982, Mr. Van Ness was succeeded in both the Public Defender and Public Advocate positions by Joseph H. Rodriguez, a prominent trial attorney and former chairman of the State Commission on Investigation and the Board of Higher Education. Mr. Rodriguez later ascended to the position of U.S. District Judge in 1985. In 1999, he was the recipient of both the "Medal of Honor Award" from the New Jersey State Bar Foundation and the "William J. Brennan Jr. Award" from the Association of Federal Bar of the State of New Jersey

Alfred A. Slocum

Judge Rodriguez was succeeded by Alfred A. Slocum, a professor of law at Rutgers University and a noted civil rights leader. Mr. Slocum was recognized for his work toward creating a more fair and equitable justice system for the poor.

Wilfredo Caraballo

In 1990, then-Gov. Jim Florio named Wilfredo Caraballo, an associate dean and professor at Seton Hall Law School, to the dual post of Public Defender/Public Advocate. Mr. Caraballo has since become a well-known member of the state Assembly, where he represents the 29th District, covering parts of Essex and Union counties. He continues to speak out about issues that concerned him as Public Defender and Public Advocate.

Zulima Farber

After Mr. Caraballo, Gov. Florio appointed Zulima V. Farber, who became the first woman to serve as both Public Advocate and Public Defender. She became known as an outspoken critic of mandatory sentences and high bails, maintaining that they contributed to unnecessary prison overcrowding. Ms. Farber has since returned to the Roseland law firm of Lowenstein Sandler. In 1999, she was presented the "Barbara Boggs Sigmund Award" by the Women's Political Caucus of New Jersey.

Susan L. Reisner

In early 1994, then-Gov. Christie Whitman appointed Susan L. Reisner to the post of Public Defender. Ms. Reisner served as Acting Public Advocate while that department was being phased out after the legislative action to realign the agencies that year. She is now a Superior Court judge serving in the Chancery Division in Passaic County.

Ivelisse Torres

In 1997, Gov. Whitman appointed Ivelisse Torres as Public Defender. At the time of her nomination, she was the Deputy Public Defender in charge of the Ocean County regional office. She was the first career public defender to rise to the agency's top post, having started her career as an assistant deputy in the Camden County region and holding that position in the Union County region as well. Ms. Torres passed away while in office in November 2000.

ACTING PUBLIC DEFENDERS

Amy R. Piro

Amy R. Piro served as Acting Public Defender between Judge Ropdriguez' departure and the appointment of Mr. Slocum. While previously serving in then-Gov. Thomas Kean's administration, Ms. Piro played a key role in legislation aimed at pay equity for women in state government, as well as the prevention of domestic violence.

Thomas S. Smith Jr

Thomas S. Smith Jr. served as Acting Public Defender and Public Advocate before Mr. Caraballo's appointment. He later was appointed to a Superior Court judgeship and currently serves in the Criminal Division in Burlington County.

David Ben-Asher

David Ben-Asher served as acting Public Defender during the time between the Caraballo and Farber administrations.

Peter A. Garcia

Peter A. Garcia was appointed Acting Public Defender after Ms. Torres' death in 2000. He previously had served as an assistant public defender and chief counsel for the agency.