By Matt Powell


This fall, UT will have a full-time criminal defense lawyer available for student assistance for the first time.

Jessica Watson, a University law graduate from 2003, started work July 31 and will officially be available to counsel all current UT students beginning Aug. 21.

"I'm very excited," said Watson of working at her alma mater. Watson has worked as a prosecutor in Hays County, and said after working in San Marcos she has dealt with many college students and understands the needs they have in criminal defense.

UT is one of few universities that provide legal representation for students completely funded through tuition. J. Raymond Schiflett, director of legal services for students, said the service has adequate funding without charging students.

"We're here to serve the students," he said. "That's part of why we exist."

Schiflett compared service to insurance. "Hopefully you don't need it," he said, "but if you do, it's paid for."

Schiflett said having a criminal defense lawyer has been a priority each of his 12 years at UT, but the push really began in 2003.

"We would have between 400 and 500 kids a year come in looking for criminal counsel," Shiflett said.

He said those students - who received only advice and a reference to criminal attorneys - made up about 20 percent of the counsel workload. Schiflett said a request for criminal counsel was one of the highest requests from UT students who came to the office.

The legal services department offers counsel to all currently enrolled UT students, on a case-by-case basis, though it will not provide counsel on student vs. student cases or student vs. University cases, as it would be a conflict of interest. The department also doesn't provide counsel on felonies, though it would provide advice and suggest another attorney.

Few universities offer criminal defense counsel at all, and even fewer without charge. Universities such as Oklahoma and Rice offer free legal advice to their students, though no official counsel is employed by the school for students.

Texas Tech University offers civil council to its students, and is modeling a criminal defense program on UT's new program, said Schiflett.

The University of Colorado at Boulder is one of the few universities that offer criminal defense counsel. UC-Boulder's criminal defense attorney, Phillip Bienvieu, a UT graduate, said that while legal counsel is part of the University's student activity fees, students face additional charges for almost any assistance, from representation in court to a counsel appointment.

Watson is working on starting outreach programs, which would educate students on how they can generally get in trouble, and understanding their rights in those situations.

"I want to make sure I am a resource for students in any way they need it," Watson said.