See what Sixth Amendment work is happening in Florida.
TTA Recipient: Miami-Dade Public Defender’s Office, 11th Judicial Circuit of Florida
Type of Training and Technical Assistance: On Demand
Area of Focus : Help create case and trial preparation checklists for effective and competent representation.
We are working with Dr. Alisa Smith to conduct a multiyear study of 4 county criminal courts in Osceola County, Florida, and 4 county criminal courts in Orange County, Florida. The project aims to uncover and document why misdemeanor defendants proceed without counsel. This project will build and examine case studies through three methods, allowing for triangulation of the data findings: observations, interviews, and case file documents. The results of the study will provide the foundation to educate the judiciary on misdemeanor defendants' perceptions of the process and counsel, with the goal of improving the rate and quality of legal representation by misdemeanor defendants.