Oct. 13, 2025
Federal court troubles grow as defense attorney shortage worsens
Two Los Angeles federal courtrooms overflowed with defendants amid a defense attorney shortage worsened by an unpaid Criminal Justice Act program, as the ongoing government shutdown deepens due process concerns.
Two federal courtrooms in Los Angeles overflowed Friday with more than 15 first-appearance criminal defendants and only a handful of defense lawyers and translators.
The cases were split between U.S. Magistrate Judges Steve Kim and Brianna F. Mircheff, and "duty day" proceedings stretched for hours into the late afternoon. The judges did not take the bench to hear the cases until after press deadline.
"It's a shitshow in there," one of the U.S. mar...
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