Criminal Justice Act: Protecting the Right to Counsel for 60 Years

For 60 years, the Criminal Justice Act (CJA) has ensured that defendants who cannot afford to retain an attorney receive professional legal counsel.

In commemoration of the passage of the 1964 law, U.S. District Judge Myron H. Thompson gave a keynote address to over 100 federal defenders and CJA panel attorneys at the Edward A. Garmatz U.S. Courthouse, in Baltimore on Feb. 8, 2024.

Thompson witnessed the implementation and evolution of the CJA first-hand, with his appointment as a CJA panel attorney in the early 1970s. Thompson reflected on how this important legislation continues to protect a right that many Americans now take for granted: the right to competent counsel, which is assured to every person charged of a federal crime, regardless of their means.

U.S. District Chief Judge James K. Bredar, of the District of Maryland, and U.S. District Judge Cathy Seibel, of the Southern District of New York and Chair of the Judicial Conference Committee on Defender Services, provided introductory remarks at the event.

Learn more about the federal defender program: https://www.fd.org/

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