You Have The Right to Remain Silent, But a Lawyer Costs $25

Lawyers will no longer automatically be provided free of charge by the Ohio legal system. Effective last Thursday, public defenders or court-appointed attorneys will require that the defendant pay $25. Consequently, applying the 'slippery slope' principle, it seems reasonable to expect that the cost of a public defender will soon be jacked up to $50, then $100, and so on.

So, is the state of Ohio going to change those little "Miranda Warning" cards that cops carry?

"You have the right to a lawyer but you must pay him."

Judges can waive the requirement if the defendants' pockets are determined to be empty. Nonetheless, I wonder why civil liberties activists haven't protested this latest governmental foray into confiscatory economics.