Please join us for free LSAT prep workshops this fall! You do not need to buy materials, but should bring a laptop to the sessions. This event is open to all UWT students!
L to R: Senator Steve O’Ban, Kanani Palafox, Mary Kay High, Chancellor Mark Pagano, Dawn Farina, Councilman Derek Young, Judge Elizabeth Martin.
On Thursday, April 26, 2018, PPPA hosted a panel discussion to address the funding of public defense in Washington State.
How is public defense an unfunded mandate?
This year was the 55th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court case Gideon v. Wainwright, which extended the constitutional right of indigent defense (attorneys for criminal defendants unable to afford their own representation) to criminal trials at the state level. By extending this provision to state court trials, the decision required that states themselves fund public defenders. This is called an unfunded mandate, meaning the federal government has required state or local governments to provide a service, but has not also provided the money for them to do so.
In Washington State, the legislature funds just 4% of this mandatory public defense, leaving counties to incorporate the remaining 96% of the cost of public defense into their own budgets, regardless of their ability to do so. This puts public defense in jeopardy, and it also affects other vital county-level services, since there is less money left to go around. Continue reading
UW Tacoma’s PPPA Division is hosting a panel discussion this month on Washington State’s funding of public defenders in the criminal justice system. The 6th Amendment to the United States Constitution, as well as the Supreme Court’s Gideon v. Wainwright decision, establish a right to legal representation for criminal defendants; however, according to a recent op-ed by Pierce County Councilman Derek Young, the Washington State Legislature funds just 4% of this public defense. Knowledgeable representatives from both local government and the criminal justice system will convene at UWT on April 26th to discuss. Continue reading
Interested in UW Law School? Attend this Open House March 3rd, 9:30-1pm. Click here to register.
For additional information, contact Assistant Dean Mathiew Le at mathiewl@uw.edu.
“Understanding Ethnic Conflict at Home and Abroad,” is the topic of our Fall Quarter Global Classroom. Jointly hosted by UW Tacoma’s Institute for Global Engagement (IGE), the SIAS Division of Politics, Philosophy, and Public Affairs (PPPA) and the World Affairs Council Tacoma, Global Classroom is an interactive speaker series on global issues that matter. The flyer is attached, please join us!
The event is free and open to the public. We strongly encourage registration as Global Classroom typically fills quickly: http://wactacoma.com/event-2719179/Registration
Professor Ernesto Chavez, Law and Policy lecturer and Pre-Law Co-ordinator has introduced a free LSAT prep course on Saturday mornings. Please contact Professor Chavez by email at elchavez@uw.edu if you have questions.
Join World Affairs Council Tacoma, Annie Wright Schools, and our own Will McGuire at Tacoma Community College on November 15th, 2017. The Travel Talk Series will feature Will’s summer 2017 experiences in Taiwan.
