Last week we hosted nearly 30 mostly new attorneys for the Misdemeanor Defender program. The training takes place here every fall, and focuses on preparing attorneys for handling cases at the district court level. If you’d like to know more about our indigent defense education programs, jump to the end of this post to find out about available training materials and future trainings. What we do at the Misdemeanor Defender Program. SOG faculty did a lot of heavy lifting at this course. Thanks to Shea Denning, the participants were treated to a thorough overview of driving while impaired, from the elements of the crime, to the Chapter 20 motions procedure, to sentencing in DWI cases. Jamie Markham brought the probation and sentencing knowledge as usual, and John Rubin covered suppression and pleadings. A big thank you to all of the SOG faculty involved last week. Other course topics included driving records, pretrial release advocacy, client interviewing, negotiation, various presentations on evidence, and district court ethics. The last day was devoted to trial advocacy skills, particularly in bench trials, where attendees are challenged to brainstorm a theory of the case and create and practice cross and direct examination questions. Between the presentations on substantive law and the skills workshops, it’s a great introduction to criminal law and trial practice in North Carolina’s district courts. In addition to the SOG faculty, we rely on volunteer attorneys from the Office of Indigent Defense Services, public defender offices, and members of the private bar from [...]
Faculty Coordinators
