According to a new report by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) enti­tled, ​“Slamming the Courthouse Doors: Denial of Access to Justice and Remedy in America,” many states severe­ly restrict access to jus­tice for cap­i­tal defen­dants and lim­it the avail­abil­i­ty of reme­dies to cor­rect errors. The prob­lem of inad­e­quate coun­sel con­tin­ues to per­vade death penal­ty sys­tems across the coun­try: ​“Few states pro­vide ade­quate funds to com­pen­sate lawyers for their work or to inves­ti­gate cas­es prop­er­ly. In addi­tion to inad­e­quate fund­ing, the major­i­ty of death-penal­ty states lack ade­quate com­pe­ten­cy stan­dards. Many states require only min­i­mal train­ing and expe­ri­ence for attor­neys han­dling death penal­ty cas­es, and in some cas­es cap­i­tal defense attor­neys fail to meet the min­i­mum guide­lines for cap­i­tal defense set by the American Bar Association (ABA),” accord­ing to the ACLU. The report also states that the absence of a right to coun­sel in post-con­vic­tion appeals leaves cap­i­tal defen­dants with few options to address seri­ous errors dur­ing their tri­al. Read full report here.

(ACLU, ​“Slamming the Courthouse Doors: Denial of Access to Justice and Remedy in America,” December 2010). See Representation. Find more Studies on the death penalty.

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