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Getting a Lawyer

Crim.R. 44 — when one is appointed, and how to ask

If you cannot afford a lawyer, one is appointed. That is not a favor the court does and it is not discretionary: it is a constitutional requirement, and it has been since Gideon in 1963.

  • Gideon v. Wainwright
  • U.S. Const. amend. VI
  • Ohio Crim.R. 44
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Who handles this in Ohio: Alliance of Ohio Legal Aids and Ohio Legal Help; and legal aid programs, lawyer referral and the state offices, listed in the Ohio directory.

It is not only for felonies. The right does not turn on whether the charge is a felony or a misdemeanor. What it turns on is exposure: no one may be sentenced to jail on a charge they faced without counsel. A misdemeanor that could put you in jail is a misdemeanor you can have a lawyer appointed for.

  • Argersinger v. Hamlin
  • Ohio Crim.R. 44
  • U.S. Const. amend. VI
  • You ask the court. There is a form, usually called an affidavit of indigency, and it is filled in at or before the first appearance.
  • Income is the test. Gross income at or below a set multiple of the federal poverty level is presumed to qualify.
  • Above that line you can still qualify, on net income after basic living expenses or on being unable to hire counsel at all.
  • Asking for a lawyer is not an admission of anything, and it does not make you look guilty.
  • Ohio Crim.R. 44
  • ORC 120.16
  • U.S. Const. amend. VI
Words some people use here. Nothing requires them.
“I cannot afford an attorney and I am asking the court to appoint one.”
  • Ohio Crim.R. 44
  • U.S. Const. amend. VI

Asking for a lawyer during questioning is a different moment from asking the court for one. The first stops the questioning. The second gets you representation for the case. Doing one does not do the other.

  • Miranda v. Arizona
  • Ohio Crim.R. 44
  • U.S. Const. amend. VI

The exact income thresholds and the form itself vary by county. The right does not.

  • ORC 120.16
  • Ohio Crim.R. 44
Sources for this section (6)
  1. Ohio Crim.R. 44 — Assignment of counsel where a defendant cannot employ one
  2. Gideon v. Wainwright, 372 U.S. 335 (1963) — A state must provide counsel to a defendant who cannot afford one
  3. U.S. Const. amend. VI — Right to counsel
  4. Argersinger v. Hamlin, 407 U.S. 25 (1972) — No jail sentence without counsel, misdemeanors included
  5. ORC 120.16 — County public defender, and representation of the indigent
  6. Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436 (1966) — Right to remain silent and to counsel during custodial interrogation

Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of September 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed Ohio attorney.

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Walked through

This section is the long version of a step in one walkthrough. Each one takes the same law one decision at a time, with both sides of the moment written out.