CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) - The Wyoming Supreme Court has sided with the state public defender, saying two lower court judges could not hold her in contempt of court for refusing to assign attorneys to defendants charged with low-level crimes.
The state high court made the ruling Wednesday regarding the 2019 decision by the Circuit Court judges in Campbell County involving State Public Defender Diane Lozano.
The judges should have heeded Lozano when she said she didn’t have enough public defenders to represent low-income defendants in misdemeanor cases, the justices ruled.
Lozano had told the Circuit Court judges in a letter that she would jeopardize clients’ right to representation by having the thinly staffed and overworked public defender’s office in Gillette take the minor cases.
“When an attorney cannot meet his/her ethical obligations, she not only jeopardizes her client’s constitutional rights, she jeopardizes her license to practice law,” Lozano told judges Paul S. Phillips and Wendy M. Bartlett.
The two judges held Lozano in contempt nonetheless, writing that she couldn’t refuse to defend clients and was legally required to do so “until and unless relieved by the trial court.”
The state Supreme Court disagreed, writing that the lower court couldn’t require Lozano to take the cases after disregarding her position about inadequate staffing.
Phillips said Thursday he respected the decision and hoped public defenders would continue to represent needy clients without interruption.
“I have great respect for Wyoming’s state public defenders. I believe they perform the toughest job in the legal field; we should all be grateful for what these unsung heroes do,” Phillips wrote.
Lozano didn’t immediately return a message seeking comment.
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