Senate OK's pay raises for lawyers for indigent

The state Senate yesterday unanimously approved the largest pay raise for the state's court-appointed lawyers in more than 20 years, potentially heading off a constitutional crisis in which an increasing number of criminal defendants throughout Massachusetts lack access to lawyers.

The Senate's 37-to-0 vote occurred three weeks after two-thirds of the lawyers who represent indigent defendants in Middlesex and Suffolk counties refused to sign up again for this fiscal year. More than 300 defendants statewide have faced criminal charges without a lawyer since July 1, according to the Committee for Public Counsel Services, the state public defender agency.

The raises would follow a pay schedule recommended by a special commission appointed by Governor Mitt Romney and the Legislature after a wage dispute last year led to the release of three accused drug dealers in Hampden County. The commission found that hourly pay rates for court-appointed lawyers in Massachusetts were among the lowest in the nation, leading many attorneys to refuse to take cases.

If the House passes the bill and the governor signs it, the state would immediately raise the lawyers' pay to $100 an hour from $61.50 for homicide cases; to $60 per hour from $46.50 for nonhomicide Superior Court cases, including sexually dangerous persons cases; and to $50 per hour from $37.50 for district court cases and children in need of services cases, as well as children and family law cases, sex offender registry, and mental health cases.

''The bottom line is that there is a real risk to the public if people who are supposed to be detained are not because of our failure to provide representation," said state Senator Steven C. Panagiotakos, a Lowell Democrat who sponsored the amendment. ''Without this legislation, there would be a major problem."

The Senate vote occurred two days after William J. Leahy, chief counsel of the Committee for Public Counsel Services, wrote to legislative leaders saying the lack of lawyers willing to represent the poor has created a constitutional crisis. Lawmakers had said they wanted to include the pay raises as part of a broader effort to overhaul the state's public defender program, but Leahy asked Senate President Robert E. Travaglini and House Speaker Salvatore F. DiMasi to raise pay rates immediately and to change other aspects of the program later.

A spokeswoman for DiMasi said House lawmakers will review the Senate's bill.

A Romney spokesman, Eric Fehrnstrom, said it's too soon to say whether the governor will sign the measure, which was attached to a bill to improve the monitoring of sex offenders released from prison. ''The Senate's action is understandable in light of recent events, but we continue to believe the best way to proceed is with a comprehensive bill that includes meaningful reform as recommended by the commission," Fehrnstrom said.

Leahy could not be reached for comment last night.

Randy Gioia, cochairman of Suffolk Lawyers for Justice, said it would be a disaster for the state if the House adjourns for its summer break without passing the bill. ''If the Legislature were to adopt the recommendations from the commission, I'm confident the lawyers will sign their contracts," Gioia said.

But Nancy McLean, a spokeswoman for the Massachusetts Association of Court Appointed Attorneys, said the Senate's raises are not sufficient. ''Although it's a good start, it does not affect the cost of living or keep up with inflation," McLean said. ''It's not enough to pay your overhead."

The commission recommended the state raise the lawyers' pay in phases over the next three years, at an ultimate annual cost of $40 million. The raises the Senate passed would account for the first phase, with hourly rates later rising an additional $10 for homicide cases and superior court cases and $5 for most district court cases. The commission also suggested treating several types of misdemeanors as civil offenses, eliminating the need for court-appointed lawyers, hiring 50 more staff lawyers at the state public defender agency, and more carefully examining defendants' claims of indigency.