What Nesset-Sale is saying, essentially, is that the University is involved in granting the constitutional right of legal counsel to residents of Clarke and Oconee Counties. That right is not called into question because of sticky PR situations. But that's part of what we're trying to teach during three years of law school. He was allegedly drunk while he did it, and was charged with theft and public intoxication. Shiver and the prisoner recognize each other from a previous case.
Shiver asks if the prisoner has a job.
The man says no, so Shiver tells him about all the construction work in Athens. He asks about the man's religion. The man says he's a Muslim. They all laugh easily. They know they're on the same team.