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HEREFORD, TEXAS - February 26, 2025:  The empty courtroom at the Deaf Smith County Courthouse in Hereford, Texas where misdemeanor court takes place. Ilana Panich-Linsman for The New York Times

You have the right to an attorney. But in Texas, don’t count on it.

In some parts of the state, misdemeanor defendants routinely face charges without representation.

By Jolie McCullough, The New York Times

AUSTIN, TEXAS - March 18, 2025: Judge Byron Ryder from Leon County, speaks at the press conference. County officials and stakeholders gather for a press conference on the steps of the Texas State Capitol on Gideon Day to recognize need for indigent defense funding in Texas. Ilana Panich-Linsman for The New York Times
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AUSTIN, TEXAS - January 27, 2025: Scott Ehlers, executive director of the Texas Indigent Defense Commission, testifies on TIDC’s Legislative Appropriations Request (LAR) at the Senate Finance Committee hearing at the Texas State Capitol. Ilana Panich-Linsman for The New York Times
AUSTIN, TEXAS - January 29, 2025: Geoff Burkhart, executive director of Texas Fair Defense Project poses for a portrait in his office in downtown Austin, Texas. Ilana Panich-Linsman for The New York Times

Judges with ‘zero courtroom experience’

HEREFORD, TEXAS - February 26, 2025: The Deaf Smith County Courthouse in Hereford, Texas. Ilana Panich-Linsman for The New York Times

Denying lawyers for the unemployed and evicted

HEREFORD, TEXAS - February 26, 2025: Deaf Smith County Judge D.J. Wagner presides over court at the Deaf Smith County Courthouse. Ilana Panich-Linsman for The New York Times
AMARILLO, TEXAS - February 26, 2025: Chief attorney Jason Howell meets with his colleagues in his Amarillo office. Ilana Panich-Linsman for The New York Times

‘We need the state legislature to step up’

HEREFORD, TEXAS - February 26, 2025: The Deaf Smith County Courthouse in Hereford, Texas. Ilana Panich-Linsman for The New York Times


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