Our commitment to the right to counsel for people who can not afford a lawyer is no secret.  I was a part of the group the developed the Maine Commission on Indigent Legal Services, and the ACLU of MAINE is committed to making sure this new Commission can do its job.  One of its most important jobs is to make sure that the lawyers appointed by (and paid for by) the state to represent people accused of crimes have the skills, the experience, and the resources necessary to do the job. 

On Tuesday, I'll be appearing before the Judiciary Committee to testify on one substantive rule and two bills relating to the right to counsel.  The rule relates to the standards a lawyer needs to meet in order to qualify as an appointed counsel, and we have argued that those standards need to be high.  One bill deals with how those standards are reviewed, and the other deals with the Commission's record keeping.  They are not glamorous, but all the work of this Commission is tied to ensuring that indigent defendants receive appropriate counsel, so we are going to be present every time there is a question about their work.