NEW YORK May 18, 2001 — In 1993 Diana Pichardo Henriquez's three year old son was taken away, after her boyfriend beat him so badly he ended up in the hospital with a broken leg. Diana was interviewed by a caseworker from the city's child welfare agency who asked her a lot of questions about the household.

HENRIQUEZ: She asked me did I spank my child I said yes. I beat him with a belt. You know, honestly I couldn't sit there and say something that I didn't. Yes I do spank my son when he needed discipline. And I showed her a small belt, his own belt.

Diana was found guilty of abuse and neglect, and her son was sent to foster care. She was only 17 years old at the time. Because she couldn't afford to hire her own attorney, she relied on a court appointed lawyer. But she says he never had time to discuss her case or pursue alternatives like parenting classes.

HENRIQUEZ: It was just a difficult process. You didn't have nobody to ask questions. I couldn't ask him anything because he said oh I have another case after. He would come to my case, my case was adjourned, he would leave. So you don't get the information you need. And especially when you call "oh he's not in the office, call back." Sometimes a 914 number long distance. At that time I didn't have the money.

Many indigent parents like Diana complain they don't get the legal assistance they need when they're accused of abuse or neglect. Children's advocates, judges and the lawyers say that's because there aren't enough court appointed attorneys to handle a caseload that is constantly growing.

WNYC spent several days observing family court proceedings around the city. No tape recordings can be made inside, so picture this: waiting rooms crowded with anxious parents, children, and women fleeing domestic violence… all sitting on plastic chairs. Typically there's only one or two attorneys assigned to handle new cases. In Manhattan family court, one young woman waited for eight hours until she could be arraigned. Afterward, she said she barely spoke to her lawyer.

WOMAN: He didn't really have time to hear how I felt to represent me right. He just went in, he didn't spend no time, five minutes. What can you actually say in five minutes?

The twenty-four year old woman - who didn't want to give her name -- was accused of throwing a boot at her child. When the judge ordered that both of her children should stay with relatives, the attorney waived her right to another hearing.

WOMAN: I wanted him to fight. To see why I couldn't have more visitation rights. It's bad enough they took them away from me. And he didn't fight like it was okay, it's not his kids.

The attorneys who represent parents in family court aren't public defenders who work for an agency. Instead, they're private lawyers who serve on a panel of assigned counsel. New York pays its court appointed counsel in family and criminal court less than any other state in the country except New Jersey. Forty dollars an hour for work done in court. And twenty-five dollars an hour outside court. Steven Hoffman is president of the New York County Lawyers Association.

HOFFMAN: These rates were set in 1986, almost 15 years ago. They were really inadequate then, they're really disgraceful now. No attorney can afford to handle a case at this rate and also make a living. And the result is that over the years fewer and fewer attorneys have been able to handle these cases, and as a result there's a crisis in the court. And there's really a severe unacceptable risk that people who need these lawyers are going to be denied the assistance of lawyers as they're entitled to get under our constitution.

Last month, the New York County Lawyers Association filed a lawsuit claiming low pay is pushing the system of indigent representation quote, "to the brink of collapse." The suit claims defendants in criminal cases are waiting years for attorneys to become available for trial. And in family court, up to fifty people are being turned away every week… meaning cases are adjourned again and again. The judge in charge of the city's family court says he's trying to recruit new lawyers to reduce the burden. Some lawyers are juggling more than a hundred cases at once. But one family court judge told WNYC the situation is approaching malpractice.

SCHULTZ: A carpenter's only as good as his tools.

Gary Schultz is a member of the assigned counsel panel for Manhattan family court. At forty dollars an hour, he says lawyers can't pay for secretaries and support staff. The tools they need to investigate complicated allegations of child abuse or domestic violence.

SCHULTZ: It's not through lack of diligence, commitment, hard work. My colleagues I think have all of that. But due to the financial strain they can't afford the other things that other attorneys have.

RALLY SPEAKER: And the legal profession and our system of justice is in serious trouble if we don't do something about this and do it now. Because we can't rely on the good lawyers of this state to make these sacrifices year in and year out….

The lawyers have been holding rallies calling on Governor George Pataki to raise their compensation rates. The state's chief judge called for a raise earlier this year. So far, this proposal has support from the Assembly. But it's not a priority for Governor Pataki says spokesman Michael McKeon.

MCKEON: The governor's first priority is crime victims. And we want to make sure crime victims get treated with respect and with justice they deserve. But as to the overall idea, the Governor has said that he has an open mind and is always willing to listen to other points of view.

But attorneys like Gary Schultz say they also represent victims. These court appointed lawyers are the only recourse for parents who may have been wrongfully accused of abuse or neglect. They also represent children sometimes, and women fleeing domestic violence. Furthermore, children's advocates fear New York's court system may have a hard time meeting new federal requirements if attorneys can't do their jobs properly. Shalini Ahuja, of the publication Child Welfare Watch, says the Adoption and Safe Families Act is supposed to speed up the adoption process with strict new time limits.

AHUJA: It's authors I think constructed it because kids spend so much time in foster care. And if the court system is not up to speed and judges aren't available and lawyers aren't available and we can't expedite the whole process of finalizing adoption then it really defeats the whole purpose.

Since this legislation went into effect last year, she says filings to terminate parental rights went up by 25 percent in New York City. Meaning more complicated cases requiring the attention of good lawyers.

Diana Pichardo Henriquez learned the value of good advocacy after she was found guilty of abuse and neglect. Her son spent six years in foster care and the city was moving to terminate her parental rights. But a social worker persuaded the judge that she had taken parenting classes and was more responsible. Today, Diana admits she wasn't always the best parent. But she believes a better lawyer might have prevented her from losing her son in 1993 by getting the help she needed.

HENRIQUEZ: I only raised my son the way I was raised. I never thought that spanking him was a bad thing. So I feel that I've always been a good parent, I just needed to be guided to be a better parent. And I think I've gotten to that level where today I am that better parent. I was seventeen. What does a child know about raising a child when you have no support and no one to support you?



The lawyers who represent parents like Diana say they also need that support. For WNYC I'm Beth Fertig.

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