McCollum v. State

WILSON, J.,

for the Court:

¶ 1. A defendant in a criminal case has a constitutional right to an attorney.1 If he cannot afford an attorney, he has a right to have an attorney appointed for him.2 He also has a right to a reasonably effective attorney.3

¶2. However, as this Court has reasoned, “a defendant - may not use his light to counsel to hinder trial.”4 Thus, some courts have recognized that a trial judge “must have the ability to find that a defendant has forfeited his right to counsel” if the defendant repeatedly manufactures conflicts with court-appointed counsel for the purpose of…