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Feb. 28, 2020Kansas City, Mo. |  By: AP

Lawsuit: 4,600 on Missouri public defender 'wait lists'

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) - Civil rights advocates have sued to end Missouri's use of public defender "wait lists," a practice they contend deprives thousands of people of their right to court-appointed counsel.

A petition filed Wednesday in the Circuit Court of Cole County seeks a court order forcing Missouri to immediately stop the practice by either appointing counsel or dropping charges against criminal defendants who have not been provided a defense attorney.

It alleges that more than 4,600 individuals were on growing waiting lists for a defense attorney in Missouri, and about 600 of those are being held in pretrial detention without legal representation.