Schmitt seeks to intervene in public defender case

Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt is seeking permission to intervene in a deal between the state's public defenders and the American Civil Liberties Union.

The deal, which sets maximum caseloads for the state’s more than 500 public defenders, "would allow untold numbers of alleged felons to avoid criminal prosecution," Schmitt claims.

The deal was proposed Monday as part of plans to settle a suit filed by the ACLU more than two years ago. The ACLU alleges the state's public defender system is failing poor defendants by not providing them with meaningful legal representation.

Read more from KCUR.