Today, Hunter sat down with Lori James-Townes, Executive Director of the largest Public Defense Association in the country, the National Association of Public Defense. After conversations with Jeff Sherr, Heather Hall, and countless other members of NAPD, listeners will likely be familiar with the organization, but Hunter wanted to speak with Lori to highlight a specific aspect of the association and the Public Defense movement at large: it is about more than lawyers. Lori is not an attorney by trade, and her experience in social work reminds us how essential it is to build public defender teams with more than just attorneys in mind.

 

Without question, zealous advocacy in the court room is the primary focus of Public Defense, but that advocacy can only go so far with a team of strictly lawyers. Paralegals, social workers, investigators, administrative staff, and others, all are essential to maximizing the representation clients can expect to receive. Enjoy this conversation with Lori and Hunter as they explore how to continue to expand the NAPD to cities and states around the country!

 

Guests:

Lori James-Townes, Executive Director of the National Association of Public Defense

 

Key Topics and Takeaways:

Lori’s Journey to Become the Executive Director [5:58]

What We can Learn from the Brittney Griner Case [17:10]

Why Lori Wanted to be the Executive Director Role [22:30]

Pushing For Policy Reform at the National Level [32:00]

Bridging Gap in the Generational Differences in Public Defenders [36:50]

How to Lift up the Voice of those Impacted by Mass Incarceration [42:51]

Improving Public Defender Media Relations [50:08]

Improving Outreach in Law School and Improving Law School’s Curriculum [1:02:08]

Resources: 

National Association of Public Defense

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Contact Hunter Parnell:

 

[email protected]

 

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www.publicdefenseless.com