Friday, May 18, 2007

Oh wow what a comedian this guy think that taxpayers want a fair juidical system. HA!

House bill offers student loan incentive
By BEN EVANS, Associated Press WriterTue May 15, 6:13 PM ET
The House voted Tuesday to pay off up to $60,000 in student loans for lawyers who commit to working as public defenders or prosecutors for at least three years.
The bill, which would cap the loan spending at $25 million a year, passed 341-73. A similar measure has been introduced in the Senate.
House sponsor David Scott (news, bio, voting record), D-Ga., said the bill would help counter high turnover in public defender and prosecutor offices across the country.
"Our communities suffer when the criminal justice system lacks a sufficient supply of experienced prosecutors and defenders," Scott said in a statement. "Criminal caseloads become unmanageable, cases can be delayed or mishandled, serious crimes may go unprosecuted, and innocent defendants may be sent to jail while guilty criminals go free."
The bill would provide loan repayments of up to $10,000 per year — up to a cap of $60,000 — for law school graduates who work as criminal prosecutors or public defenders instead of taking what are often more lucrative jobs at private firms. The measure, which would expire in 2013 unless reauthorized, has backing from the American Bar Association and other legal groups.
"It is increasingly difficult for public law offices to retain experienced prosecutors and defenders," said Paul Logli, state's attorney in Winnebago County, Ill., and chairman of the board of the National District Attorneys Association. "Most of the young attorneys coming out of law school now are burdened with what most people would consider mortgage-sized debt."
Richard Goemann, a former public defender in Fairfax, Va., and director of defender legal services for the National Legal Aid and Defender Association, said young lawyers often leave the public sector just as they gain experience and training.
"Taxpayers have an interest in a fair and reliable criminal justice system," Goemann said. "Without experienced, talented public defenders and prosecutors, the criminal justice system does not work."

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