1.   -- Many indigent defense attorneys admit they rely on arresting authorities in preparing their case because of crushing caseloads.

2.   A study by the state bar called indigent defense in Texas a national embarrassment.

3.   Advocates of reform say keeping control of indigent defense at the local level will only perpetuate existing problems.

4.   Ellis also plans to introduce legislation improving the quality of indigent defense in capital cases.

5.   Ellis believes the national spotlight on indigent defense should help other states, including Georgia.

6.   Florida, for example, spends more than twice as much as Georgia on a per capita basis on indigent defense.

7.   Gov. Roy Barnes, who practiced law in Marietta, has suggested that attorneys be required to handle indigent defense cases.

8.   It took Texas lawmakers eight years to adopt legislation requiring the state to begin funding indigent defense and providing central oversight.

9.   Lawyers and activists point to the case as an example of how bad indigent defense is in South Georgia.

10.   Last year, Bush vetoed a modest indigent defense bill that its backers said would have improved the quality of representation in criminal cases.