Ted Poe: “I spent all my life basically in the criminal justice system as a prosecutor or as a trial judge, and I can attest to…”

“I spent all my life basically in the criminal justice system as a prosecutor or as a trial judge, and I can attest to the high workload, long hours and low pay attributed to our Nation's prosecutors and to public defenders. I have found over the years that most of them do what they do because they are committed to serving the public, either as a prosecutor or a public defender. They certainly don't do it for the money. According to the Law Schools Admission Council, however, the average law school debt for an individual who borrows Federal or private loans is anywhere from $90,000 up. The starting salary for local and State prosecutors and public defenders starts anywhere at $25,000 and sometimes it reaches $50,000. It is not nearly enough to cover the expenses and keep up with the high loan repayments every month that these lawyers have to deal with. This leaves many qualified and dedicated lawyers leaving the district attorney's office and the public defender's office for work in the private sector where they can make more money.”