UT: stepping up for an injured colleague

Public defender grateful for help after accident

Public defender Tony B. Miles chokes back tears as he talks about all the help he has received since he accidentally cut off two fingers and a thumb two weeks before Christmas. "How do you express how grateful you are," said the South Weber man, trying to check his emotions.

For the past month and a half, the five other public defenders in Farmington have taken his cases, appeared in front of judges, and either had cases continued or worked to resolve the cases for his clients...

Miles is also grateful the injury does not mean the end of his career. "I honestly love the public defender work," said Miles, who has practiced law for the past 10 years...

I liked this:

Rich Gallegos who coordinates the Davis County public defender schedules said it has always been an unwritten agreement among the public defenders if one of them needs time off either because of an illness, a family matter, or even a vacation, they cover for each other. But this is the longest period that any of them has needed help.

"We all just asked how can we help. Everyone, the judges, clerks, even the clients have been great," Gallegos said.

I hope that you have the same understanding where you work.