Advocates ask court to release dozens of defendants as attorneys' work stoppage over pay continues 

The organization that oversees legal representation for criminal defendants in Massachusetts is calling on the state's highest court to release dozens of people being held without a lawyer in Greater Boston.

The Committee for Public Counsel Services is also calling on the court to increase compensation for private attorneys who are in their fourth week of a work stoppage over wages.

An emergency petition filed Wednesday by the organization says more than 70 people in Suffolk and Middlesex counties are being held without attorney representation as of Friday.

The petition seeks to trigger what is known as the "Lavalle protocol." The 2004 Supreme Judicial Court rule requires the state to release pretrial defendants who aren't assigned a lawyer within seven days of their detention.

Among the dozens of people held without bail and without an attorney, the charges they are facing vary, according to records compiled by bar advocates in Suffolk County. Some are charged with low level crimes like shoplifting or drug possession. Others face more severe charges, such as assault and battery on a pregnant victim or assault with intent to murder.

The motion also calls on the court to temporarily approve a higher pay rate for those attorneys until the Legislature "addresses the shortage of counsel on a more permanent basis."

Massachusetts pays bar advocates $65 an hour in district court, the lowest rate of any New England state.