Genesee County Courts Facility
One West Main Street
Batavia, NY 14020

(585) 344-2550, Ext.2280
Fax: (585) 344-8553

Email: publicdefender@co.genesee.ny.us

Meet The Staff	Links
Client Handbook	Statement of Client's Rights

 

It is our mission to advocate with a broad vision of public defense work, to view clients not as "cases," but as whole people: caring parents, hard workers, recent immigrants, native New Yorkers, and students with hope for the future. We are committed to working with our clients, their families, and their communities to address the critical issues that circumscribe their lives, whether defending a client's liberty; connecting them to mental health services for the first time; or encouraging individuals to engage in the civic life of their community.

Functions

The Public Defenders Office exists pursuant to Constitutional and Statutory mandate (Sixth Amendment Right to Counsel and New York State County Law Article 18–a). The Public Defenders Office provides legal representation to:

1. Indigent individuals charged with offenses, misdemeanors and felony crimes in the criminal courts of this County,
2. Indigent individuals appealing criminal convictions,
3. Indigent individuals who are parties in proceedings before the Family Court of this County dealing with issues of parental rights or the loss of liberty and
4. Juveniles petitioned to Family Court with regard to allegations of Juvenile Delinquency or being a Person In Need of Supervision.

The existence of the department benefits clients represented; the Criminal Justice and Family Court Justice systems, by fostering the efficient administration of the systems; and the community as a whole by safeguarding and protecting the rights of the citizens. The existence of this department guarantees that the right of counsel for the citizens of this County is meaningfully provided, by a professional and support staff dedicated to protecting the rights of the accused and integrity of the justice system. The office identifies collateral needs of the client, such as mental health or substance abuse treatment and arranges referrals for the same. County Government benefits by the provision of mandated services at a cost savings over other statutory alternatives for the delivery of these services such as assigned counsel plans. County Government further benefits fiscally from the staffs’ commitment to exploration of and advocacy of alternatives to incarceration where appropriate.

Goals

The primary goal of the Public Defenders Office is to provide the best possible representation to each individual client, and to guarantee the protection of the individual client's rights. By doing so, the integrity of the system as whole is upheld as a secondary goal, to the benefit of the community at large.

In order to provide the highest level of representation, it will continue to be a goal of the office to increase supervision and in house training, as well as formal continuing legal education for the staff.

We will continue to focus on alternatives to incarceration, both pretrial and dispositional, with a particular emphasis on treatment alternatives. To further this end, we will continue to explore better methods for the system as a whole to identify low risk offenders (both current risk to the community and risk of recidivism) who would be appropriate for alternatives to incarceration. This effort is formalized through our participation on Criminal Justice Advisory Council subcommittees. We will continue to advocate for system approaches and dispositions that seek to address the root causes of crime on an individual basis and reduce recidivism. At present a special awareness of veterans in the criminal justice system, recognition of Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome and appropriate treatment referrals are a primary concern.

Accomplishments

Public Defender Gary A. Horton continues as a member of the Board of Directors of the New York State Defenders Association.

The office has actively participated through the New York State Defenders Association in Chief Defender Meetings and seminars for purpose of dialogue, training and information exchange with other public defense counsel and administrators from across the state.

The office has actively participated in ongoing systemic dialogue with other components of the local criminal justice system through active participation in the Criminal Justice Advisory Council and the Genesee County Magistrates Association.

The office, during 2003, instituted Chief Defender meetings involving public defense programs in the Eighth Judicial District, for the purpose of dialogue and information exchange. These meetings will continue on a quarterly basis.

Elizabeth Raponi, Case Manager, was awarded the Constance Miller Award from the Genesee County Mental Health Association.