Determining Eligibility for Appointed Counsel in New York State:
A Report from the Public Defense Backup Center (1994)



XI. INAPPROPRIATE RELIANCE ON A SINGLE FACTOR SUCH AS INCOME

As noted previously, professional standards governing the provision of defense services all concur that eligibility determinations must be made on a casebycase basis, and therefore must not be premised solely on any single factor. The standards uniformly call for assessment of each case on its individual merits, with substantial consideration given to the assets and debts of the defendant, the seriousness of the charge, the complexity of the case, and the cost of privately retained counsel in the jurisdiction where the representation will occur.

However, courts and public defense providers, faced by time and resource constraints and a lack of essential data, are frequently forced to forego a casebycase analysis in favor of a quick assessment based predominately on the defendant's income. Thus, while income should be used as a starting point for a financial inquiry, all too often a defendant's income is afforded disproportionate consideration in the eligibility determination. [25]

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25 As can be seen in Appendix 15-17, most counties, when specifically asked whether income guidelines are the sole determinant of the eligibility assessment, responded negatively. However, while most counties collect a variety of financial information on their eligibility applications, no county has disclosed a method used for weighing the financial data when determining eligibility. Given the absence of any method or formula for assessing the data, and based on NYSDA's extensive work in the area of eligibility, it appears that those determining eligibility frequently accord disproportionate weight to a defendant's income or employment status. RETURN to Document