About the curriculum
All participants will go through a fourteen-day initial training period designed to teach three basic topic areas: 1) the ethics and professionalism of public defense, 2) pretrial practice and trial prep, and 3) trial advocacy and persuasion. Participants will then attend five subsequent, semi-annual, weekend-long training sessions that will focus on specific topics related to indigent defense. Some of these subsequent sessions will focus on new areas - such as appellate advocacy, sentencing advocacy, or mental health – while others will expand on topics covered during the initial training – such as advanced trial skills or dealing with specific evidentiary issues or other legal topics.
Inaugural Class of 2007 - Initial Training
The initial training for the SPDTC Class of 2007 will be held at the Cumberland School of Law at Samford University in Birmingham, AL from July 31, 2007 through August 14, 2007. The agenda for this training is below:
JULY 31 Orientation/Dinner
AUGUST 1 (Professionalism, Ethics, and Client Relations)
9:00 – 10:15 Introductions – Overview of the Program
10:15 – 11:30 Role of the Public Defender (Professionalism and Public Defense)
11:45 – 12:45 Client Centered Representation and Ethics - Role-play
12:45 -2:00 Lunch
2:00 – 3:30 Ethics Exercises
3:45 – 5:15 Client Relations and Ethics
5:15 – 6:30 Dinner
6:30 – 8:30 Why Good Public Defense is So Important – The Shareef Cousin
Story: Lessons From an Innocent Man (professionalism)
AUGUST 2 (Client Interviews, Initial Hearings, and Bond Considerations)
9:30 – 11:00 Client Interview - Role-play (professionalism)
11:15 – 12:45 Bond Hearing - Role-play
12:45 – 2:00 Lunch
2:00 – 3:15 Client Interview Simulation (professionalism)
3:15 – 6:15 Bond hearing Simulation
6:30 – 8:00 Dinner: Presentation/The Art of Preliminary Hearings
AUGUST 3 (Preliminary Hearings)
10:30 – 11:30 Preliminary Hearings – Nuts and Bolts
11:45 – 12:45 Preliminary Hearing – You Figure it Out
12:45 – 2:00 Lunch
2:00 – 4:00 Preliminary Hearing Simulation
4:00 – 5:00 Preliminary Hearing Debriefing
AUGUST 4 (Storytelling and Investigation)
10:30 – 1:00 Storytelling For The Public Defender
2:15 – 3:15 Investigation – Nuts and Bolts
4:00 – 6:00 Investigation Workshop
AUGUST 5 (Witness Statements and Special Issues Confronting
Public Defenders)
11:00 – 12:30 Taking a Witness Statement
12:30 – 2:00 Lunch
2:00 – 3:30 Public Defender Problem Solving - Workshop
3:45 – 5:15 Dealing With Issues of Difference In Our Work
5:15 – 6:45 Dinner
6:45 Movie: Murder on a Sunday Morning
AUGUST 6 (Witness Statements, Evidentiary Issues, Brainstorming
and Defense Theories)
9:30 – 11:00 Statement Taking Simulation
11:15 – 12:30 Statement Taking Debriefing
12:30 – 2:00 Lunch
2:00 – 3:00 Evidentiary Issues – Keeping It Out/Getting It In (trial)
3:15 – 4:15 Brainstorming Facts (trial)
4:30 – 5:30 Defense Theories (trial)
6:30 – 8:30 Motions Practice - Search and Seizure, Statements and
Identification
AUGUST 7 (Brainstorming, Defense Theory, and Discovery)
9:30 – 11:00 Brainstorming Workshop (trial)
11:00 – 12:30 Defense Theory Workshops (trial)
12:30 – 2:00 Lunch
2:00 – 3:00 Discovery
3:15 – 5:15 Discovery - Role-play
AUGUST 8 (Brady, Objections, Hearsay)
9:00 – 10:00 Brady Overview
10:15 – 12:15 Brady - Role-play
12:15 – 1:30 Lunch
1:30 – 3:30 Evidence: Objections Exercises (trial)
3:45 – 5:45 Evidence: Hearsay Exercises (trial)
6:30-8:00 Dinner / Make That Record (Exercise)
AUGUST 9 (Trial Strategy, Persuasion, Voir Dire)
9:15 – 12:15 Trial Strategy Workshops (trial)
12:15 – 1:30 Lunch
1:30 – 3:30 Persuasion in the Courtroom Workshops (trial)
3:45 – 5:00 Voir Dire – What to Ask and How to Ask It (trial)
5:15 – 7:15 Persuasion Presentations (working dinner) (trial)
AUGUST 10 (Opening Statements and Direct Examination)
9:15 – 10:00 Opening Statements – How To (trial)
10:30 – 11:30 Direct Examination – How To (trial)
REMAINDER OF THE DAY – INDEPENDENT STUDY – Prepare Voir-Dire, Opening Statements, and Direct Examination in the Program case. Faculty will be available for consultation.
AUGUST 11 (Voir Dire, Opening Statements, Cross Examination)
10:30 – 12:30 Voir Dire Workshops (trial)
12:30 – 1:30 Lunch
1:30 – 3:45 Opening Statement Workshops (trial)
4:00 – 5:15 Cross Examination (trial)
AUGUST 12 (Evidentiary Foundations, Impeachment, Cross Examination,
and ClosingArguments)
10:30 – 11:30 Evidentiary Foundations (trial)
11:45 – 1:00 Impeachment Exercises (trial)
1:00 – 2:15 Lunch
2:15 – 3:45 Cross Examination Theory (Bias) (trial)
4:00 – 5:00 Closing Arguments Presentation (trial)
AUGUST 13 (Direct Examination and Cross Examination)
10:00 – 12:00 Direct Examination Workshops (trial)
12:00 – 1:00 Lunch
1:00 – 3:30 Cross Examination Workshops (trial)
REMAINDER OF THE DAY – INDEPENDENT STUDY – Prepare Closing Arguments in the Program case. Faculty will be available for consultation.
AUGUST 14 (Closing Arguments, Wrap up) 10:00 – 12:30 Closing Argument Workshops (trial)12:30 -1:30 Lunch
1:30 -3:30 Tying It All Together
