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WEBVTT CAN LEGALLY SOLICIT DONATIONS.AND IN THIS HOLIDAY SEASON,THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT THEY'REDOING.IT'S NO WINTER WONDERLAND, BUTINSIDE THE ORLEANS PARISH PUBLICDEFENDER'S OFFICE IN MID-CITY,IT'S THE SEASON OF GIVING.I WOULD DESCRIBE IT AS CREATIVE.TRAVERS: CHIEF PUBLIC DEFENDERDERWYN BUNTON'S OFFICE RECENTLYSENT OUT THIS NEWSLETTER ASKINGFOR DONATIONS.IT'S AN EFFORT TO MAKE FINANCIALENDS MEET.>> IT'S ONE OF THE WAYS WE USETO FILL A LOT OF THE HOLES WEHAVE AS IT PERTAINS TO FUNDING.TRAVERS: THERE'S EVEN A SPOT ONTHE LINK OUT TO DONATE TO THISGOVERNMENT ENTITY THATREPRESENTS THE POOR AT TRIAL.THE FUNDRAISING EFFORT COMES ASTHE CITY INCREASED IT'S PORTIONOF THE PUBLIC DEFENDER'S BUDGETBY $600,000 FOR 2017, BUT BUNTONSAYS IT IS STILL NOT ENOUGH.>> IT'S BETTER FOR US TO DO THIS, WE THINK, THEN TO SIT BACK ANDHOPE FOR THE BEST.TRAVERS: AND THE MOVE TO RAISEMONEY IS NOT GOING UNNOTICED.>> HIGHLY UNUSUAL, I'VE NEVERSEEN OR HEARD OF THIS BEFORE.TRAVERS: A FORMER PUBLICDEFENDER SEES PROBLEMS IN THEREQUEST FOR DONATIONS.>> YOU HAVE TO WORRY ABOUTCONFLICTS DOWN THE LINE,ESPECIALLY IN MURDER CASES,WHERE YOU HAVE PEOPLE WHO MAYHAVE DONATED MONEY AND NOWTHEY'RE ON TRIAL OR A WITNESSWHO'S DONATED MONEY AND HOW DOYOU STOP THAT FROM BEING ACONFLICT.

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An under-funded city government agency with a more than $7 million budget is taking steps to raise revenue this holiday season, and some say the move is controversial. It's no winter wonderland inside the Orleans Parish Public Defenders office in Mid-City, but it's the season of giving. "I would describe it as creative," Derwyn Bunton, the chief public defender, said. Bunton's office recently sent out a newsletter asking for donations. It's an effort to make financial ends meet. "It's one of the ways we use to fill a lot of the holes we have as it pertains to funding," he said. There's even a spot on the link to donate to the government entity that represents the poor at trial. The fundraising effort comes despite the city increasing its portion of the public defenders' budget by $600,000 for 2017, which Bunton said is still not enough. "It's better for us to do this than sit back and do nothing," Bunton said. And the move to raise money isn't going unnoticed. "(It's) highly unusual. I've never seen or heard of this before," legal analyst Robert Jenkins said. Jenkins, a former public defender, sees potential problems in the request for donations. "You have to worry about conflicts down the line, especially in murder cases, where you have people, families who may have donated money and now they're on trial, or a witness who's donated money and how do you stop that from being a conflict? You're gonna see conflicts created by seeking money from the public," Jenkins said. Bunton disagrees. "What we say to that is simply, we need the resources," he said. The office is funded through the state and the city of New Orleans. The money earmarked for the office in New Orleans comes from a portion of red-light traffic camera tickets. The city is nearly doubling the number of cameras it will use next year, which could also mean more money for Bunton's office. At the same time the city increased the public defenders' budget, it slashed the district attorney's budget by $600,000. Keep up with local news, weather and current events with the WDSU app here. Sign up for our email newsletters to get breaking news right in your inbox. Click here to sign up!