You can file a petition asking the appellate division to certify the case for transfer to the Court of Appeal. Fill out this form if you wish to act as your own attorney.Place your initials on the line after each item if you understand and agree with it. You need to tell the court that your public defender has not talked to you and ask the court to relieve the PD's office and appoint other counsel. The appeal process is complicated and difficult to navigate. Call our team of California criminal appeals lawyers for a FREE consultation. For professional negligence legal counsel in San Diego, call attorney Bradley L. Jacobs, Attorney at Law, APC. He can help with claims and defense. We can interview witnesses and the former defense attorney so that we can assess if your 6th Amendment rights to effective assistance of counsel were violated. If your son believes that his PD is ineffective then he can bring the matter to the Court's attention and the the Judge will have to conduct a Nelson Hearing.