67: Managed Assigned Counsel: A Savvy Solution or a Simple Stop Gap? w/Jim Bethke

Public Defenseless · Nov 18, 2022 · 1h 8m

Can a managed assigned council system be a workable solution to indigent defense problems?

Jim Bethke is the former executive director of the Texas Indigent Defense Commission and the current director of the Managed Assigned Counsel Office in San Antonio. In this episode, he talks about the system that he helped create and the areas he thinks still need work.

There are three main types of indigent defense representation delivery models: full-time public defender, office contract counsel, and assigned counsel. Texas relies heavily on assigned council, and there are both pros and cons to that…