Ending Mississippi's Criminal Law "Dead Zone" and the Challenge of Securing Public Defender "Wins" w/Andre de Gruy

Jan 11

Today, Hunter is once again joined by Mississippi State Public Defender Andre de Gruy to discuss the criminal legal system in Mississippi. Specifically, Hunter and Andre dig into how the state ended the “dead zone” in the legal system that left incarcerated people without counsel for more than a year. They discuss the on going problems in making the changes meaningful improvements in the overall legal system, and after that, they touch on the state’s attempt to take over the judicial system in Jackson Mississippi.

Guests:

Andre de Gruy, State Public Defender, Mississippi

Resources:

State Take Over of Jackson’s Judiciary

https://www.cnn.com/2023/04/21/us/jackson-mississippi-judicial-system/index.html

https://www.naacpldf.org/press-release/plaintiffs-celebrate-victory-in-challenge-to-mississippi-h-b-1020/

https://www.wjtv.com/news/politics/mississippi-politics/hearing-held-on-naacps-lawsuit-against-house-bill-1020/

https://www.mississippifreepress.org/38790/state-run-jackson-court-can-move-forward-after-judge-again-denies-naacp-request

Mississippi Dead Zone

https://6ac.org/mississippis-dead-zone-highlights-the-urgent-need-for-state-level-reforms/

https://www.propublica.org/article/mississippi-courts-unprepared-to-ensure-poor-defendants-have-lawyers

https://www.propublica.org/article/mississippi-supreme-court-poor-criminal-defendants-lawyer#:~:text=That%20means%20Mississippi's%20%E2%80%9Cdead%20zone,indictment%20%E2%80%94%20persists%20in%20many%20counties.