"ST. PAUL, Minn. -- Anyone who has ever watched a cop catch a bad guy on television likely has this constitutional right committed to memory: If you can't afford an attorney, one will be provided for you.

But a new Minnesota law that requires poor people to pay as much as $200 for this privilege is under attack by public defenders and some judges, who contend that it undermines the 40-year-old legal tenet established by the U.S. Supreme Court in Gideon v. Wainwright.

Minnesota is one of a growing number of states facing enormous budget deficits that are beginning to charge indigents for their constitutional right to legal representation. States including Arkansas, Ohio and New Jersey charge the poor $10 to $200 for lawyers -- fees that proponents argue are nominal and allow everyone to share the burden. Maryland charges adults $50 and juveniles $25; the District and Virginia do not charge. "

Besides being obviously unconstitutional, it acts as a compounded tax on whatever the fine is.