Mohun assists Assigned Counsel Program reforms in Erie County | News

BUFFALO — The past two years have been rough for the Erie County Assigned Counsel program, which spends about $28 million a year in taxpayer money to represent thousands of criminal defendants and people in Family Court who say they cannot afford to pay lawyers.

In April 2024, County Executive Mark Poloncarz raised alarms about the skyrocketing costs of the program. Six months after that, The Buffalo News revealed that several attorneys in the program were on track to make at least $400,000 that year – far more money than any state judge or New York’s attorney general.

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