Juvenile Public Defender

The juvenile public defender's office represents juveniles ages 10-16 who have been accused and asked to appear in juvenile court.

A Brief History

Since July of 1971 indigent children in Travis County have been provided with legal assistance through the offices of the Juvenile Public Defender. At its inception the office of the Juvenile Public Defender was operated under the supervision of Juvenile Court. Initial funding for the Juvenile Public Defender was provided as a result of a grant from the Texas Criminal Justice Council.

Recognizing a need for continuation of this program, the Travis County Juvenile Court solicited the aid of Model cities and Criminal Justice Council to continue funding the Public Defender Project for an additional two years. During the years 1971 through July 1974 no county funds were expended to fund the Juvenile Public Defender office with the exception of in-kind contributions such as phone and office use. In July of 1974 Travis County began funding the Juvenile Public Defender office. During this time the first budget included funded as follows:

• 1 attorney $14,148.00
• 1 secretary 7,512.00
• TOTAL = $21,660.00

In September of 1975 the Commissioners Court voted to transfer the Juvenile Public Defender office from the operation under Juvenile Court and the Travis County Juvenile Board to an independent office through a contract with the Legal Aid & Defender Society of Travis County. During 1973 the Juvenile Public Defender represented 362 clients.

Currently the Juvenile Public Defender's office consists of seven attorneys and a support staff which includes a full-time investigator and two legal secretaries. In Fiscal year 2000 the Travis County Juvenile Public Defender represented children in every stage of the legal process which included 1670 court cases 3138 detention hearings and 4 Appellate proceedings.

• 1971 Juvenile Public Defender's office is created through a grant submitted by Juvenile Court.

• 1972, grant is extended for an additional two years.

• September of 1975, the Commissioners Court vote to transfer the Juvenile Public Defender, from Juvenile Board's budget to an independent office within Travis County.