Access to competent legal advocacy

Some detention facilities do not have provisions for procuring a lawyer, even if they claim there is a Public Defender system in place.

How do defendants and inmates get the contact information for non-Public Defender lawyers?

If they happen to get contact information for a lawyer, is the defendant or inmate given access to a phone during business hours?

Is the defendant or inmate given reading glasses with which to see the phone dial and read their legal documents?

How do they communicate with the Public Defender? Do the Public Defenders answer defendant and inmate phone calls? Are they forced to make repeated attempts to reach the Public Defender and feel extreme gratitude that one spoke to them before the hearing? How long, productive and how long before the hearing was the meeting with the Public Defender prior to the hearing?

More egregious, does the local bar association accept collect calls from the detention facility so the defendant or inmate can get a referral?

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