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Defense in Death Penalty Cases Up in the Air
Produced by Tony Arnold on Thursday, June 04, 2009
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Cook County's public defender says his office doesn't have the money to represent some clients facing the death penalty.
Abishi Cunningham says the State of Illinois cut parts of his budget last year, specifically for defending clients facing the death penalty. Now, he says, that fund is out of money.
CUNNINGHAM: If the policy of this state is to have a death penalty, that policy must be accompanied by an appropriate financial commitment to the defense of the accused.
Public defenders are asking judges in about 60 death penalty cases to either appoint private attorneys to handle the defense, or not seek the death penalty. A spokesperson for Cook County's states attorney's office says prosecutors have opposed the public defender's motions in those cases.
Meantime, Cunningham's plea for more money has drawn the attention at the federal level. U.S. Representative Mike Quigley says he will look into getting federal funds for the public defender's office.
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