Large caseloads and little pay are a part of the drill for prosecutors and public defenders, but recently shrinking budgets paired with increasing crime has the public defenders office on the brink of their own legal case.

Ian Nesbeth left public service and went into private practice with the Pumphrey law firm last month... but says this decision was a heart-wrenching one.

"I loved the work, and I thought I was, could make a difference doing that job, but at the end of the day I have to support my family," says Nesbeth.

Like so many assistant public defenders, Nesbeth says no raises from the legislature for a few years in a job that already pays too little and the swelling caseload made it hard for him to justify the job.

Nancy Daniels says these are the most difficult times she's seen in 18 years of serving as this Circuit's Public Defender.

"If I had to actually tell these employees now I'm going to have to make you take days off without pay to make payroll at the end of the year, I just can't even imagine having to do that... but I might have to," says Daniels.

The caseload for public defenders is simply staggering. Assistant Public Defender Merribeth Bohanan is preparing for a court day where she has 190 cases on her docket.

"And so I feel pressured that I need to go through a 190 cases right away and talk to all these clients so that maybe I can resolve their case," explains Bohanan.

Nancy Daniels says the overwhelming caseload is creating a situation where it's impossible to ensure the constitutional right of effective counsel for people who can't afford an attorney.
Daniels says she's considering filing the same kind of lawsuit the Miami-Dade Public Defender has already filed against the state... which would allow public defenders to limit their cases to a realistic and manageable number. In the Miami-Dade case, the trial judge agreed with the Public Defender and said the situation was not legal for the clients. The case is now pending in the appellate court for that district.