Episode Description

Hunter Parnell spoke with Heather Rogers and Caitlin Becker of the Santa Cruz County Public Defenders. In 2020, the Sixth Amendment Center put together a report detailing the severe issues with how Santa Cruz County provided Public Defense. At the time, a law firm was working a flat rate fee contract to provide public defender services in the county. As is expected, that system was deeply flawed and couldn’t meet the demands of the Sixth Amendment. Fast forward five years, Heather, Caitlin, and the team at the Santa Cruz County Public Defender has transformed the office into a comprehensive holistic defender program. How did that happen? What are the benefits of this model? All those questions and more on this episode!

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/6pMDXN7uuqgEsmQgP4Ep8H

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/346-the-revival-of-public-defense-in-santa-cruz/id1600528975?i=1000703580029