Then again, certain judges and prosecutors appear to believe any attorney at all is superfluous. Of course, the judges and prosecutors giving such advice don't have to live with the consequences of a decision made with no access to legal counsel. Moreover, the lawyer you get may well be worse than useless. As you might guess, such a system makes quick hash of the notion that the attorney's first loyalty is to his client. You tick off the judge and you don't get any more appointments.
Lawyers learn their lesson, or they find another line of work.
In addition to general criminal representation and juvenile defense, the Appleseed investigators also considered the situation for capital offenses and defendants with mental illness. The practice is much the same, only with greater consequences. Criminal courts make little attempt even to identify those defendants who may be mentally ill, and generally have little or no resources to give special attention to those defendants. It doesn't seem too much to ask that the state set aside another sawbuck or two on our behalf to provide a right guaranteed in both the U.S. and Texas Constitutions. Several legislative aides are brandishing Appleseed's new reports around the Capitol this session, but they say they're already fighting the prevailing wind that insists there's no money for new programs.