Idahoans’ constitutional right to an attorney continues to be undermined, despite our decade-long fight for equal access to legal counsel.
So they must rely on public defenders.
Every day, Idahoans are being denied their constitutional right to adequate legal counsel.
The ACLU is working to fix it.
The ACLU, the ACLU of Idaho, and the global law firm Hogan Lovells filed a lawsuit against the State of Idaho in 2015 on behalf of tens of thousands of Idahoans who cannot afford a private attorney. Our class action lawsuit, known as Tucker v. State of Idaho, demands an end to Idaho’s public defense system crisis.
A decade later, litigation continues.
Read below to learn the latest in public defense, our ongoing work to protect every Idahoans' Sixth Amendment right to legal representation, and our persistent efforts to hold the State accountable for violations of this fundamental right.
The State of Idaho assumed responsibility for delivering all public defense services on October 1, 2024; previously, public defense was managed at the county level. Idaho’s new statewide system has so far failed to provide the most basic and fundamental services required of public defense. The state’s failure directly affects tens of thousands of Idahoans in the certified class of plaintiffs.
The persistent, uneven, and statewide issues with Idaho’s public defense system prompted our team to file an emergency motion in December of 2024 in the Idaho Supreme Court. The filing details significant flaws in the state’s public defense system. These flaws, while specific to the new Office of the State Public Defender (SPD), are firmly rooted in the ACLU of Idaho’s decade-long legal challenge to Idaho’s public defense system (Tucker v. State).
Lawmakers have, in recent years, passed legislation related to public defense. Unfortunately, these efforts have failed to address significant and persistent defects in Idaho’s public defense system. Staffing shortages and case management issues continue to contribute to widespread delays in (or total absence of) adequate legal representation for Idahoans.
Absent meaningful reform, our legal advocacy continues.
Follow us on socials or check this page to stay updated on Tucker and public defense in Idaho.
17-year timeline of efforts to reform Idaho's defective public defense system, explaining how we got here.
ACLU of Idaho begins to track public defense issues in response to an increase in intake complaints.
National Legal Aid and Defender Association releases a report finding unconstitutional public defense systems in all of the Idaho counties studied. Idaho’s governor-appointed Criminal Justice Commission creates a subcommittee on public defense.
Idaho Criminal Justice Commission’s Public Defense Subcommittee recommends creating an interim committee of the Idaho Legislature to focus on public defense reform.
Idaho legislature bans flat-fee public defense contracts.
Legislature creates a statewide Public Defense Commission with very limited powers.
ACLU, ACLU of Idaho, and Hogan Lovells US LLP file a class action lawsuit in state court against the Governor and Public Defense Commission members over the statewide public defense system.
State trial court dismisses our lawsuit on standing, ripeness, and separation of powers grounds. We immediately appeal to the Idaho Supreme Court.
These public defense reform bills:
Public Defense Commission creates new rules that fail to include workload or caseload standards and use permissive rather than mandatory language.
Idaho Supreme Court rules that ACLU/Hogan Lovells lawsuit should go forward, holding that “the counties have no practical ability to effect statewide change” and so “the State must implement the remedy.”
Both sides in the lawsuit argue before the state District Court over whether the case should be certified as a class action.
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