The Philadelphia homicide judge charged by the state Supreme Court with examining the constitutionality of the pay given to private defense lawyers for defendants facing death row said in a report issued Tuesday that the pay is “grossly inadequate” and that the city of Philadelphia should spend over $300,000 more per year paying death penalty lawyers.
Senior Judge Benjamin Lerner said low pay has led to a shortage of lawyers willing to take cases that can’t be handled by the Defender Association of Philadelphia.
