[bennyk]

[ QUOTE ]
if you're going to be presumptuous enough to make your living intervening in the lives of others, you should at least bother being good at it.

[/ QUOTE ]

this person sounds like she's excellent at her job. she explains that she does what is possible given the circumstances. being realistic about what can be accomplished for a defendent can be the difference between getting a slightly-unfavorable plea bargain and losing in trial for a stiff minimum penalty.

being a public defender is a noble and selfless thing to do. to call it "presumptuous" is ridiculous. PD's aren't presuming to intervene in someone's life, they are ASSIGNED to clients in order to give them the protection that the law provides. think about it.
bk