In a famous aphorism Mr. Justice Holmes once said : “[I]t ought always to be remembered that historic continuity with the past is not a duty, it is only a necessity.” In regard to the subject which I am discussing today we can paraphrase this by saying: “In a democracy freedom of speech is not a duty; it is only a necessity.” The essential feature of a democratic system of…
Last year the American Bar Foundation, in cooperation with the American Bar Association and other groups, launched a nationwide audit of the defense of indigent persons accused of crime. Information was gathered from every state. Within each state, questionnaires were mailed to most judges, all prosecuting attorneys, and a sampling of defense lawyers, and field surveys were conducted in several counties selected at random. One or more reporters, usually native…