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Indigence and Criminal Justice The indigent are disproportionately represented among those who come before the criminal justice system. Is this something that should be reflected in the operations of the criminal law? Should there be special provisions for those who must negotiate the criminal justice system? Many years ago the Supreme Court thought so in its landmark Gideon v. Wainwright decision. Was it justified in doing so? Did it then (and in subsequent decisions) go far enough? And should indigence also play a role in substantive criminal law: as, perhaps, a mitigating claim with regard criminal liability or as a defense against the full weight of such liability? In the 1970s, Judge David Bazelon and Professor Stephen Morse engaged in a classic discussion of these issues. Yet the issues remain with us. The Institute for Criminal Justice Ethics is sponsoring this, the first of a two-part project on the place of indigence in criminal law. In this two-day conference, several prominent lawyers and theorists will grapple with the broad questions that indigence poses for criminal law. In the second conference, scheduled for Spring, 1998, invited speakers will focus in greater detail on some of the specific problems generated during the first meeting Featured Speakers for the First Part: Inquiries regarding the Conference can be directed to: |
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