Reuben Kramer's monumental bronze sculpture of Justice Thurgood Marshall stands outside the U.S. Courthouse in Baltimore, the Justice's hometown.  In his early years as a private lawyer in Baltimore, Justice Marshall often represented the indigent.

Three criminal cases had a profound effect upon his development as a lawyer.  In 1936, he persuaded an all-white jury in Baltimore to acquit a weak-minded youngster on the charge of murder.  He successfully represented a criminal defense attorney charged with the "ethical violation" of maintaining that his client's conviction was tainted by racial prejudice.  And in 1935, James Gross, a young man whom Justice Marshall unsuccessfully represented on a murder charge, was hanged in the Maryland Penitentiary.

     The United States Attorney’s Office (USAO) recently complained to the Court that the indigent defense bar is misusing 17(c) subpoenas. As a remedy, the USAO requested that the Court should limit – or eliminate – our ability to seek 17(c) subpoenas ex parte. The basis for the request was several instances of alleged “over-reaching” on defense counsel’s part in seeking these subpoenas. While the USAO remedy seems like an over-reach itself, and the Court is not making any procedural changes in response, we do need to be careful. The ex parte process brings with it a special responsibility. It is generally indefensible to request a “gag order” on the recipients of our subpoenas. Subpoenas are an important tool in investigating our cases. We have to treat the ex parte process with care. Because of that concern, we are planning a series of trainings on the proper use of 17(c) subpoenas starting with the upcoming training in Baltimore.

 The Marshals have greatly expanded the number of beds for detainees in the region. The Marshals have doubled the available beds at the Maryland Correctional Adjustment Center (Supermax). They have also lined up a number of beds in the Annex to the DC Jail. This will allow the Marshals to use the Northeast Ohio Correctional Center far less. The Marshals are still using over 20 facilities to house over 500 detainees. While we continue to have concerns about the conditions at Supermax and the DC facility, it is a relief not to be traveling to Youngstown, Ohio on a regular basis.