Spotlight
Lawyers Aren't Biting at Indigent-Defense Fund
After years of sparring with the state, court-appointed attorneys finally won a raise from the General Assembly, but so far the lawyers have been slow to pick up the cash. Of the $8.2 million that state lawmakers allocated in July, only about $254,573 has been claimed.
"It's just a big cultural change for everyone -- lawyers, judges and clerks," says Betsy Edwards, director of the Virginia Fair Trial Project, which helped pass the increase.
