What are the advantages of retaining a private attorney vs. a public defender in Texas?

Gary Churak’s Answer

The benefit of a private attorney versus a court-appointed attorney is that the private attorney has more experience in representing defendants in criminal cases. He or she has more resources than the court-appointed attorney. Basically, a court-appointed attorney is going to be paid a set amount by the county to represent the defendant. It could be as little as 100 dollars in misdemeanor cases to 400 dollars in felony cases. So bottom line is you get what you pay for. That is not to say that all court-appointed attorneys are unqualified. But some of them are young unexperienced lawyers; some of them are lawyers that feel they have an obligation to do court appointments. The bottom line is usually with a retained attorney, you’re going to receive a more thorough defense of your case.