Public Defender Told to Pay Up

Maybe I should think twice before applying to the Public Defender's Office.

A man who was falsely imprisoned after being shot and framed by corrupt Rampart gang officers nearly a decade ago was awarded $6.5 million in damages Wednesday by a jury that found his county public defender was negligent for failing to uncover the police misconduct.

Javier Francisco Ovando was paralyzed after he was shot by former Los Angeles police officers Rafael Perez and Nino Durden in 1996, but was later convicted and served 2 1/2 years of a 23-year sentence in state prison after the pair testified that he attacked them.

Here's the full story.

One quick thought: Who represented the Public Defender's Office and the PD?  Did the county rely on its usual (less than stellar) civil defense lawyers, or did they bring in a real trial lawyer?