Public Defense on the Edge of the Map: A Conversation with Howard Phillips

Justice Speaks Podcast #94

In this episode of Justice Speaks, Howard Phillips, Deputy Chief Public Defender for the Office of Territorial Public Defenders in the United States Virgin Islands, provides a examination of public defense practice in one of the nation’s most distinctive jurisdictions. Drawing on decades of criminal defense experience across two very different legal landscapes, Mr. Phillips offers an account of how the territorial justice system operates, where it falls short, and what meaningful reform would require.

About Howard Phillips

Mr. Phillips was raised in Seattle, Washington, following his family’s relocation from Hobart, Oklahoma. Prior to his legal career, he completed a decade of military service with the United States Army, stationed in Germany in a non-combatant evacuation unit responsible for managing pre-positioned military equipment. Upon his return, he pursued higher education at Seattle Community College, the University of Washington, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in political science, and the University of Washington School of Law. He notes that during his second year of law school he was the sole Black man enrolled, a circumstance he regarded as significant, if not surprising given his upbringing in Seattle.

A Career Built in the Courtroom

From the outset of his legal career, Mr. Phillips conceived of his role as one of interposition, standing between people who are poor caught in the justice system and the full weight of its consequences. He joined the Seattle public defender’s office, handling misdemeanors, felonies, juvenile matters, and dependency proceedings before transitioning to the Northwest Defenders Association, a private firm specializing in complex criminal defense. There he managed capital cases and high-stakes litigation. Among the most consequential of these was his representation of a seventeen-year-old defendant in a six-month aggravated murder trial, which resulted in a second-degree conviction, a result later vacated on constitutional grounds, ultimately allowing his client to be released.

Relocation to St. Croix

Mr. Phillips’  decision to relocate to the Virgin Islands was motivated at least in part by personal desire for a more temperate and agrarian environment. His entry into the territorial criminal defense bar was not immediate: both the public defender’s office and the attorney general’s office declined to interview him upon his arrival, notwithstanding his extensive experience. He spent his first eight years on the island practicing insurance defense under attorney Andy Simpson, a period he credits with developing his legal writing, a discipline he observes is frequently neglected in the trial-intensive environment of public defense. He was ultimately recruited into the Office of Territorial Public Defenders after his courtroom conduct came to the attention of its then-deputy chief.

The Office of Territorial Public Defenders

Mr. Phillips currently directs the St. Croix division of the Office of Territorial Public Defenders. The office also maintains a division covering St. Thomas and St. John. The caseload, which runs into the hundreds annually, is now handled by six attorneys,  double the number available when Mr. Phillips first joined. Under the leadership of newly appointed Chief Joe Mo Mead, the office has achieved salary parity with the attorney general’s office, a standard rarely met in public defense nationally. Notably, expert witness funding is administered internally, permitting approval in a matter of days rather than the weeks that judicial authorization might require in other jurisdictions. Mr. Phillips regards both developments as material to the quality of representation his office is able to provide.

The Court Structure of the U.S. Virgin Islands

The episode addresses the Virgin Islands’ court structure. The Superior Court, formerly the Territorial Court, exercises jurisdiction over local law and it is the court in which the Office of Territorial Public Defenders practices. A separate federal district court, served by a distinct federal public defender’s office, handles federal matters. Of particular significance is the establishment, over the past fifteen years, of a Virgin Islands Supreme Court that now sits as the court of last resort for territorial matters, answering directly to the United States Supreme Court rather than the Third Circuit Court of Appeals. Mr. Phillips also addresses several procedural distinctions that shape practice in the Superior Court, including the absence of voir dire and the absence of a clearly defined speedy trial standard, features that more closely resemble federal court practice than the procedures familiar to most state court practitioners.

Priorities for Reform

When asked to identify the single reform most warranted in the territorial justice system, Mr. Phillips identifies the absence of a meaningful speedy trial guarantee. Without a clearly enforceable standard, defendants may remain in pretrial limbo for years at substantial personal cost, he cites one client who incurred over $23,000 in ankle monitoring expenses before his case was resolved. Mr. Phillips identifies the treatment of individuals with mental illness as a second pressing concern. The territorial jail is functioning as a de facto psychiatric facility, cycling individuals through detention without access to adequate treatment, a pattern that fails both the individuals involved and the broader community.

Beyond the Practice of Law

The episode concludes with a discussion of Mr. Phillips’ musical life on the island. The pervasive presence of live music on St. Croix drew him back to the piano after a hiatus of several decades. He currently performs with two ensembles: Moose and Dim, a blues and funk group, and Troublemakers, a jazz band whose members include fellow attorneys. The band performed at the territorial jail during the Christmas season,  a detail that speaks, in its modest way, to the same instinct that has defined his legal career: a commitment to being present where the justice system and human vulnerability converge.

We wish to thank Howard Phillips for sharing his insights and experience on Justice Speaks.