The American Bar Association has backed the right to counsel for someone facing jail time for contempt in a child support case.
ABA Brief Supports Right to Counsel for Civil Contempt Defendants Facing Possible Jail Time - News - ABA Journal
The case Turner v. Rogers was argued yesterday in the Supreme Court. Michael Turner was $6,000 in arrears on his $60/week child support obligation when a South Carolina judge sentenced him to 12 months in jail for contempt of court in a civil contempt. He could purge himself of the contempt by paying the $6,000. Where he was supposed to get that money I don't know. He was a drug user who had asked for a second chance. This was his fourth time in the slammer for failure to pay child support.
Two law professors Benjamin Barton and Darryl Brown in an amicus brief urge reform of pro se representation - saying that extension of Gideon will raw resources from criminal defendants by putting greater burdens on public defenders, etc.
SCOTUS Blog previews the argument HERE.
The transcript of the argument is HERE
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