Sacramento Attorneys Face Financial Crisis Amid Federal Funding Shutdown

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Sacramento defense attorneys are facing a dire financial crisis, as more than 40 lawyers representing federal defendants have been without pay since July. This situation arises from the cessation of federal funding for court-appointed private attorneys, which was last authorized in July.

According to Dina Santos, a member of the Criminal Justice Act panel, “We’ve missed three months of paychecks with no end in sight.” Attorneys in this panel provide vital legal representation to defendants who cannot afford legal counsel.

The funding for these attorneys is reliant on money approved by Congress, and with the ongoing government shutdown, payments remain frozen. Santos stated, “We expected that once a new budget was passed in October, we would receive back pay, but now, with the shutdown in place, there are no payments whatsoever.”

The financial strain extends beyond lawyers themselves. Support staff, including investigators and paralegals, are also enduring this unpaid period. Earlier in October, $8.5 million was released to the panel attorney fund, which allowed for partial payments but left many attorneys, like Mark Reichel, receiving only about 10% of what they are owed.

With 85% of panel attorneys working in small firms or as solo practitioners, many are questioning how long they can continue without adequate compensation. Some attorneys have indicated that they may step away from their cases due to the lack of payment, raising concerns about who could step in to replace them. Reichel emphasized, “Who’s qualified to replace us?”

This unpaid stretch not only threatens the livelihood of attorneys but also the constitutional rights of defendants. Santos mentioned, “We have a Constitution that ensures the accused are entitled to counsel. If attorneys begin to withdraw, criminal cases could stall.”

The Criminal Justice Act attorneys are responsible for handling about 40% of all criminal cases in the U.S., according to the U.S. Courts. However, these services cannot simply be transferred to federal defender organizations, which are already facing staffing shortages. Efforts to reach federal agencies for comment have resulted in no substantive responses due to the ongoing shutdown.