Indigent Defense Funding and its Effect on Capital Punishment in North Carolina, 1976-present (2012)

Undergraduate: Lindsey Stephens

Faculty Advisor: Frank Baumgartner
Department: Political Science

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The creation of a centralized statewide Indigent Defense Services (IDS) in 2001 was one of the most significant of many recent reforms in criminal justice affecting the dramatic decline in the use of the death penalty in our state. This thesis explores the motivations of those who supported the creation of the IDS, as well as the accomplishments of IDS in the past ten years, through an examination of government documents, IDS reports, and interviews. Based on the research, the study concludes that many concerns about the quality and spending associated with criminal defense influenced the creation of IDS, which has been a cost-effective and efficient solution. In addition, although there is still room for growth and development within IDS, the improvements made to defense in the capital realm are the most significant accomplishments of the new system. Finally, with the budget crisis looming, IDS faces a challenge in maintaining the quality defense attorneys that it has worked to train and improve circumstances for, which can only be solved by an increase in the budget for indigent services.