Criminal Defense Clinic
- Professors, Criminal Defense Clinic: Ann England and Violeta Chapin
- Course Numbers and Descriptions: First Term / Second Term, One-Semester only
- Student Resources
Mission and Clients
The Criminal Defense Clinic has two main goals that meet the needs of both our clients and our law students:
- Provide the instruction and training to our law students to prepare them for the practice of law
- Provide high-quality legal services to our client community and to serve the community at large by providing legal assistance to those too poor to otherwise afford a lawyer
Many of our students report that the most outstanding feature of the program is learning first-hand about many dimensions of the client-lawyer relationship and having an opportunity to assist persons who otherwise would likely be without legal representation.
Clients run the gamut. Student may represent a homeless person charged with illegal camping, or a person charged with child abuse, sexual assault, or multiple alcohol-related traffic offenses.
Scope
The Clinic teaches students the basic skills of criminal practice and provides them the opportunity to represent clients in actual cases in municipal and county courts primarily in Boulder County. Under the close supervision of a full-time clinical professor, students take cases from first bond appearance, through motions hearings, to trial and on appeal and are expected to take full responsibility for the case. Students appear in court and advocate in an adversarial system.
This Clinic is offered in a one-semester and a two-semester course. Each clinic is limited to 12 students. The professor works closely with the students on all aspects of the cases and accompanies the student attorney to all contested hearings and trials in the courts. Students in the clinic are permitted to practice in Colorado courts by Colorado statute and Colorado Supreme Court Rule.
