The state public defender system’s inability to hire and retain so-called “conflict” lawyers has hundreds of people charged with crimes across Georgia with no one to represent them.

Federal public defenders warn they face severe budget cuts that could require them to trim more than 10% of their current staff. That will hurt many of their low income clients.

We need federal public defenders on the front lines. Across the country, defenders litigate hundreds of hearings a day to determine the essential question of whether someone presumed innocent of a ...