Criminal Justice Agency - Essay Example

It shall also discuss the role of the lawyer in assisting victims of crime or individuals who have been charged or convicted with crime. Keywords: Federal Public Defender, lawyer, attorney, criminal justice agency, lawyering Federal Public Defender Organization I. Introduction “The Federal Public Defender is appointed by the Ninth Circuit of the United States Court of Appeals to serve a term of four years. All employees of the Federal Public Defender are employed by the judicial branch of the U.S. Government.

The Office of the Federal Public Defender for the Central District of California is the largest federal public defender agency in the United States. The Central District of California covers seven counties which include Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo and Ventura, with a population of over 19 million people. They have offices located in Los Angeles, Santa Ana and Riverside. The main office is located in the Little Tokyo section of downtown Los Angeles with branch offices in Riverside and Santa Ana California.

The office has over 240 employees, including 92 attorneys, 26 paralegals, 38 investigators and more than 85 supporting staff members. The Office supports two units namely, the Trial Unit and the Capital Habeas Unit. The attorneys in our Trial Unit are appointed by the court to represent those persons charged with federal offenses who cannot afford to retain their own attorney” (Federal Public). Significance of the Agency I chose the office of the Federal Public Defender because I believe in their cause.

They help out poor and indigent individuals who cannot afford the services of a lawyer. They represent people who are wrongly charged for offenses that they did not commit, or victims of crime. I have a high regard for lawyers who fight for the causes of the clients even if they do not earn much profit from practicing the profession. I want to contribute in improving the criminal justice system of our country by helping these individuals who are deprived of good legal services. There should be no distinction or discrimination between paying clients and non-paying clients.

This is in consonance to the equal protection clause by upholding every person’s right to a counsel. I have a high regard for the objective of this organization in “ensuring equal justice for all”. Qualifications “A Federal Public Defender Organization shall consist of one or more full-time salaried attorneys. The Organization shall be supervised by a Federal Public Defender appointed by the Court of Appeals of the Circuit, after receiving recommendations from the district court or courts to be served.

The Federal Public Defender shall be appointed for a term of four (4) years, unless removed by the court of appeals for incompetency, misconduct in his office until his successor is appointed, or until one year after expiration of such defender’s term, whichever is earlier” (United States Code, 2006). “The compensation of the Federal Public Defender shall be fixed by the court of appeals of the circuit at a rate not to exceed the compensation received by the United States attorney for the district where representation is furnished, or if two