Office of the Federal Public Defender
Eastern District of Texas
| Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals | Office of Defender Services Training Branch | Contact Our Offices |
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Office of the Federal Public Defender Eastern District of Texas |
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| The
United States Supreme Court established an indigent defendant's right
to legal counsel
in Federal Courts in 1938. Johnson v.
Zerbst, 304 U.S. 458 (1938). To satisfy the requirement, federal District
Judges appointed lawyers for indigent defendants, without pay or even reimbursement
for expenses. The appointed lawyers were often inexperienced in criminal law.
The Criminal Justice Act of 1964 (CJA) was enacted to provide payment for appointed
lawyers and to create a core of full-time Federal Public Defenders, with skills
equal to those of federal prosecutors. In response to the Criminal Justice Act,
the federal judiciary created the Federal Defender Services program. Approximately
85 percent of all criminal cases prosecuted in federal courts require appointed
legal counsel. The Defender Services Committee of the Judicial Conference of
the United
States Geographical Information about the Eastern District of Texas
The Eastern District of Texas contains 43 counties and covers in excess of 50,000 square miles. There are seven divisions within the district. There are a total of nine District Judges and six Magistrate Judges. The Federal Public Defender's Office has fully staffed operations in Beaumont, Sherman, Frisco, and Tyler, Texas. Division cities within the Eastern District of Texas are Beaumont, Lufkin, Marshall, Paris, Sherman, Texarkana, and Tyler. The Eastern District also has a courthouse in Plano Texas as a place to hold court for the Sherman Division. NOTICE
The Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals will begin offering electronic filing to attorneys on a voluntary basis by the end of 2009.
Registration for voluntary electronic filing began October 7, 2009. Due to the expected high volume of registration requests, court acceptance of electronic filing accounts may take longer than expected. Please be assured that you will receive notification when the court has acted on your request. Your account will be accepted as "Approved - ECF Not Yet Available" because CM/ECF is not yet accessible for testing or filing. If you receive this notification, your account is complete. Electronic filers must complete at least two interactive electronic
learning modules (see below) and provide certification that they have
done so by using the email button at the end of the modules.
New CJA Rates Approved
Memo detailing hourly rate & case maximum increases for CJA Panel Attorneys. Click Here
Required Reading
Useful Reading
Selected Guideline Application Decisions for the Fifth Circuit - PDF Adobe Reader required
Supreme Court Cases on Sentencing Issues - PDF Adobe Reader required
Practice Tips for Post-Booker Cases - PDF Adobe Reader required
An Introduction to Federal Sentencing 9th Ed. - PDF Adobe Reader required
Information for Federal Criminal Defendants - PDF Adobe Reader required
Search and Seizure 2006 - Steve Sady PDF format Adobe Reader required
Supreme Court and Fifth Circuit Update- Timothy Crooks PDF format Adobe Reader required CHANGES TO THE SENTENCING GUIDELINES
Federal Sentencing Guidelines Manual and Appendices (2008). This manual contains the federal sentencing guidelines and policy statements effective November 1, 2008.
A"Reader-Friendly" Version of Amendments on Crack Cocaine and Retroactivity (effective May 1, 2008) and Amendments Submitted to Congress on May 1, 2008 (effective November 1, 2008) -This compilation contains unofficial text of (A) amendments effective May 1, 2008, and (B) amendments submitted to Congress on May 1, 2008, effective November 1, 2008. Official text of Part A can be found in the Federal Register at 73 FR 23521, and official text of Part B will appear in an upcoming edition of the Federal Register.
Amendments to the Sentencing Guidelines, Policy Statements, and Official Commentary (May 1, 2008) - Pursuant to section 994(p) of title 28, United States Code, the United States Sentencing Commission hereby submits to the Congress the following amendments to the sentencing guidelines and the reasons therefor. As authorized by such section, the Commission specifies an effective date of November 1, 2008, for these amendments.
THE CRACK COCAINE AMENDMENTS TO THE FEDERAL SENTENCING GUIDELINES TRAINING ANNOUNCMENTS
The Training Branch of the Office of Defender Services will present several workshops during the FY 2010. The following link will direct you to the www.fd.org training programs web page, http://www.fd.org/odstb_TRAINING.htm#panel. Financial assistance is available to qualified individuals. Please also note that further information, registration forms and financial assistance applications for training workshops can be found on www.fd.org.
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TRAINING FOR PANEL ATTORNEYS ANNOUCEMENTS
WINNING STRATEGIES SEMINAR
FUNDAMENTALS OF FEDERAL CRIMINAL PRACTICE |
The Office
of the Federal Public Defender, Eastern District of Texas, operates
under authority of the
Criminal Justice Act of 1964 (CJA), 18
U.S.C. § 3006A. It provides defense services in federal criminal cases
and other covered matters to individuals who are financially unable to
obtain adequate representation. A person’s eligibility for defender
services is determined by the federal court. Defender organization attorneys
may not engage in the private practice of law. |
Last updated on -March 24, 2009
