...building the next generation
About SPDTC
The Southern Public Defender Training Center (SPDTC) is an organization committed to providing training to new public defenders throughout the South. SPDTC offers a three-year training curriculum designed for public defenders with less than three years of experience representing indigent defendants. This curriculum includes roughly 100 hours of instruction during the first year and 20-28 hours of instruction annually the following two years.
It is our mission to inspire, mobilize and train legal professionals to provide the highest quality defense representation to people unable to afford an attorney. SPDTC lawyers, alumni, trainers, and partners are changing the culture of indigent defense, in the South and eventually across the country, ultimately ensuring that every person has access to justice.
What else should I know?
SPDTC is designed to fill a void in training currently available to young public defenders. It takes into consideration a big-picture view of what public defenders need to better represent their clients. Rather than being limited to trial skills or discrete legal topics, SPDTC offers a comprehensive curriculum designed specifically for public defenders.
Training is designed to be interactive, making use of exercises requiring role play and simulation. With an average student to faculty member ratio of three to one, participants receive an extraordinary amount of individual attention in small group settings. SPDTC offers a faculty of both current and former public defenders from around the country. These lawyers are all committed to the improvement of indigent defense representation and have been responsible for raising the standard of practice in jurisdictions nationwide.
Jonathan Rapping, SPDTC Founder & CEO
Mr. Rapping is on the faculty of the John Marshall Law School in Atlanta, GA, where he teaches criminal law and criminal procedure. He is the former Training Director of the Public Defender Service for the District of Columbia, an office nationally known for its training program.
Read more . . .
What else should I know?
SPDTC is designed to fill a void in training currently available to young public defenders. It takes into consideration a big-picture view of what public defenders need to better represent their clients. Rather than being limited to trial skills or discrete legal topics, SPDTC offers a comprehensive curriculum designed specifically for public defenders.
Training is designed to be interactive, making use of exercises requiring role play and simulation. With an average student to faculty member ratio of three to one, participants receive an extraordinary amount of individual attention in small group settings. SPDTC offers a faculty of both current and former public defenders from around the country. These lawyers are all committed to the improvement of indigent defense representation and have been responsible for raising the standard of practice in jurisdictions nationwide.
Jonathan Rapping, SPDTC Founder & CEO
Mr. Rapping is on the faculty of the John Marshall Law School in Atlanta, GA, where he teaches criminal law and criminal procedure. He is the former Training Director of the Public Defender Service for the District of Columbia, an office nationally known for its training program.
Read more . . .
Jonathan Rapping, SPDTC Founder & CEO
Mr. Rapping is on the faculty of the John Marshall Law School in Atlanta, GA, where he teaches criminal law and criminal procedure. He is the former Training Director of the Public Defender Service for the District of Columbia, an office nationally known for its training program.
Read more . . .
Special thanks to:
The Ford Foundation and The Open Society Institute for their financial support.
The Southern Center for Human Rights for housing The SPDTC. Cumberland School of Law for hosting The SPDTC Summer Institute, and Atlanta's John Marshall Law School.
AND TO OUR 2010 LAW FIRM SPONSORS:
The Ford Foundation and The Open Society Institute for their financial support.
The Southern Center for Human Rights for housing The SPDTC. Cumberland School of Law for hosting The SPDTC Summer Institute, and Atlanta's John Marshall Law School.
AND TO OUR 2010 LAW FIRM SPONSORS:
To learn more about The Southern Public Defender Training Center:
Read our newsletter Defender Connections - Spring 2010 or the SPDTC Brochure. Review our Executive Summary
Read our newsletter Defender Connections - Spring 2010 or the SPDTC Brochure. Review our Executive Summary
