Criminal defendants in the county who can’t afford private attorneys, known as indigent defendants, often find their fates in the hands of lawyers who get paid based on caps set in 2006. Depending on the attorney appointed to their case, a defendant could face outcomes ranging from dropped charges to a life-altering felony sentence.

Author Archives: Dakota Castro-Jarrett
Dakota Castro-Jarrett is a second-year student at Northeastern University in Boston, studying journalism and cultural anthropology. Born and raised in Pittsburgh, Dakota has written for his school’s independent student newspaper The Huntington News, his school’s music magazine Tastemakers, as well as writing a 2021 essay for PublicSource. He begins his internship pursuing stories focused on education and politics. During his free time he enjoys listening to music and exploring all the local oddities in the Pittsburgh area.