There has been a push from the American Bar Association, among others, to deem lawyers as essential workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite stay-at-home orders, some courts have remained open and policing generally remains unchanged. Indeed, there have been serious racial disparities in how COVID-19 measures have been enforced.  

There are particularly serious concerns for children in juvenile detention, who must face questioning from adults without attorneys and cannot receive visits from their families. Attorneys, and particularly public defenders, have been involved in efforts to release detainees from jail and decrease arrest numbers to ease overcrowding in detention centres.  

Watch Huffpost's video here.  

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