Court Opinion

ID: 9796518
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-31 03:59:07.684597+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T08:50:26.642779
License: Public Domain

*208Judge SCHWARTZMAN,
specially concurring
I concur in the general tenor of the Court’s opinion, although I would not go so far as to say that a rejection of appointed counsel completely forecloses the prisoner-defendant from any and every constitutional right of access to the courts, such as legal recourse to prepare and have a subpoena served, or review the state’s discovery responses in his/ her cell. But the constitutional right to prepare some type of defense must be strictly balanced against the legitimate security needs and resource constraints of the prison or jail. See U.S. v. Robinson, 913 F.2d 712, 717, (9th Cir.1990).
In situations such as this, I would suggest that a trial court could, within its discretion, appoint the public defender as “stand-by” counsel, if only to assist a defendant in securing standard legal materials, such as mentioned above, for his/her pro se defense. Id. at 716. The attorney’s services should be limited by the trial court to logistical support only, and the defendant so advised. In this way a proper balance can be reasonably achieved between access to the courts and a defendant’s right of self-representation within the prison/jail context.