FPD describes their office and internship in the following statement from their website:
The Federal Public Defender’s Office is a friendly and social community with hardworking attorneys from a wide variety of backgrounds… Through these programs, law students gain a vast array of experience in criminal defense law… The FPD office represents indigent clients against convictions at trial, or where appropriate, by bargaining for plea agreements, and if a client is convicted, by obtaining a just and fair sentence.
-https://nce.fd.org/law-school-student-internship-opportunities
From my experience, I believe this to be true, if not an understatement, of the amazing people at this office. I consider public defenders angels– they work long days for the people that most of society has forgotten. They welcomed me with open arms, driving me to jail visits and popping into my makeshift office to say hello. As someone with a background speaking Spanish, I was able to aid in translations during client meetings so attorneys could focus on crafting questions. Some of the attorneys were fluent in Spanish, and I learned so much from them when listening to their client meetings.
