The Bronx Defenders

The Bronx DefendersEstablished| 1997; 27 years ago (1997)

|

Founders| Robin Steinberg, David Feige, Daniel Arshack, and five other founders.
Type| Non-profit

Region

| The Bronx
Services| Public defender

Executive Director

| Wesley Caines

Staff (2016)

| 250[1]
Website| www.bronxdefenders.org

The Bronx Defenders is a public defender office located in the South Bronx neighborhood of New York City. At the Bronx Defenders, criminal defense lawyers work together with civil lawyers, family defense lawyers, immigration lawyers, non-attorney advocates, social workers, and investigators to help their clients address the full range of legal and social issues that can result from criminal charges.[2]

## History[edit]

Founded in 1997 by a team of eight advocates, including its former executive director Robin Steinberg, David Feige and criminal defense attorney Daniel Arshack, the Bronx Defenders is responsible for developing holistic defense, an interdisciplinary model of criminal defense lawyering.[3] The Bronx Defenders is also host to The Bronx Freedom Fund, the first charitable bail organization in New York State.

In late 2023, Justine Olderman stepped down from her position as Executive Director. She held the post for six years, and was the second ever in the position, being appointed by founder Robin Steinberg.[4] As of January 2024, Wesley Caines has stepped into the roll as an interim while the Board hires an outside firm to conduct a national search for a new Executive Director.

## Contract[edit]

The Bronx Defenders are a contracted public defender for New York City, along with the Legal Aid Society, New York County Defender Services in Manhattan, Brooklyn Defender Services in Brooklyn, Queens Law Associates in Queens, and the Neighborhood Defender Service in northern Manhattan.[5][6]

## Recognition[edit]

In recent years, the Bronx Defenders has received national attention and praise for its work providing holistic defense to indigent residents of the Bronx, including the National Legal Aid & Defender Association’s Clara Shortridge Foltz Award.[7]

As of early 2016, the office had 250 employees working in it.[1]

## See also[edit]

* The Legal Aid Society
* New York City Criminal Court

## References[edit]

1. ^ a b "Sonia Sotomayor Goes Back to the Bronx". The New Yorker. February 8, 2016. Retrieved July 19, 2016.
2. ^ Robin Steinberg, "Heeding Gideon's Call in the Twenty-First Century: Holistic Defense and the New Public Defense Paradigm", 70 Washington & Lee Law Review 961-984 (2013).
3. ^ Winnie Hu, "In South Bronx, Legal Aid and Shoulders to Lean On", The New York Times, 27 February 2013.
4. ^ "Justine Olderman Stepping Down as Executive Director at The Bronx Defenders - The Bronx Defenders". 2023-08-04. Retrieved 2024-01-22.
5. ^ Wright, Eisha N. (27 March 2015). Report on the Fiscal 2016 Preliminary Budget: Courts and Legal Aid Society / Indigent Defense Services (PDF). New York City Council Finance Division.
6. ^ "Common Injuries In Car Accidents And Their Legal Implications". 2024-03-15. Retrieved 2024-04-11.
7. ^ "The Bronx Defenders Wins the National Legal Aid and Defender Association's 2013 Clara Shortridge Foltz Award". The Bronx Defenders. Retrieved 2019-05-09.

## External links[edit]

* Official Website
* Personal Injury Lawyer