Understanding the court system with the public defenders

Minnesota’s 6th Judicial District handles over 59,000 case filings in the Northland every year. But for people going through a court case, it can be pretty overwhelming not knowing all the legal terms. However, public defenders with the 6th Judicial District is helping people on the Fond du Lac reservation providing free legal advice.

When it comes to civil or criminal court cases it can be difficult understanding all the legal jargon. Thomas Boenigk an Assistant Public Defender has been offering help for people who can’t afford an attorney.

“There’s actually a lot more help than people think in Fond du Lac, Minnesota. There’s a lot of resources out there,” Boenigk said. “A lot of people tend to think that it’s a loss cause or something like that. That’s just not true. There is no loss cause.”

Public defenders represent 8 out of 10 criminal defendants throughout the state according to the Minnesota Board of Public Defense. After a court case is resolved, defendants who relied on a public defender must pay a $75 co-payment, unless the court reduces or waives it.

“That’s always something that we’re happy to talk about with clients as well. So a lot of people just don’t have enough money to go around, for much of anything,” Boenigk said. “Trying to take care of that copay is something that we can work on.”

Boenigk also said he and other fellow public defenders are more than willing to accept court cases throughout the Northland.

“The hard part of being a public defender is sometimes you’re meeting people at their worst. So you really try to help people from that starting point, and really try. That’s a rewarding part of it, too if you can really help somebody,” Boenigk said. “Can’t save everybody and can’t get everybody out of trouble. But by trying to minimize the damage that the system might otherwise do to them is really where we’re at.”

Members of the Fond du Lac Band can meet with Boenigk at the Tribal Center next Thursday from 1pm-3:30pm. Minnesota’s 6th Judicial District also serves Cook, Lake, Carlton and St. Louis Counties.

“We’ve got a number of attorneys in Carlton, but we’ve also got a whole bunch of attorneys over in Duluth as well then up in Hibbing, Virginia. We’ve got we’ve got plenty of attorneys for anybody that needs one. And if people have questions, they’re more than welcome to come stop by our offices, too.”

Also for other stories with the 6th Judicial District you can read more here.