No. CS/CS/SB 762
Filed under Legal.
Offices of Criminal Conflict and Civil Regional Counsel; Requiring that an office of criminal conflict and civil regional counsel provide a certain written notice to the court under specified conditions; authorizing the court to appoint an office of criminal conflict and civil regional counsel in another region for certain cases in certain circumstances; requiring the court to consider judicial economy and geographic proximity when making certain appointments; requiring such appointed counsel to provide certain documentation to the Justice Administrative Commission for reimbursement, subject to legislative appropriation, etc.
Plain English Summary
AI-GENERATEDWhen an office of criminal conflict and civil regional counsel can no longer handle an indigent defendant's death penalty case due to a conflict or lack of qualifications, it must notify the court in writing.
The court can then appoint a qualified regional counsel office from a different region to take the case, instead of turning only to a private attorney, weighing judicial economy and geographic proximity in the decision.
That office must document its costs to the Justice Administrative Commission for reimbursement, subject to legislative funding, and file a detailed biannual report on every case it takes this way.
If no other region's office can take the case either, the court must appoint a private attorney instead, so representation does not lapse while the conflict is sorted out.
AIOnce notified, the court may appoint a qualified office of criminal conflict and civil regional counsel from a different region to take over the case, an alternative to the private-attorney appointment process that ss. 27.40 and 27.5305 otherwise authorize.
AIIf the out-of-region office also cannot accept the case because of a conflict of interest or a lack of qualified attorneys, the court must appoint a private attorney instead, so representation does not lapse.
AIWhen an office of criminal conflict and civil regional counsel decides it can no longer represent an indigent defendant in a death penalty case, due to a conflict of interest or lack of qualifications, it must put that determination in writing and send it to the court.
AIWhen deciding whether to refer and appoint a case to an out-of-region office, the court must weigh judicial economy and how geographically close that office is, though the bill sets no standard for how heavily either factor should count.
AIAn out-of-region office that takes on a case must document all due process costs and representation services to the Justice Administrative Commission to be reimbursed, but that reimbursement depends on the Legislature appropriating funds for it.
AITwice a year, by February 1 and August 1, any regional office that took on an out-of-region death-penalty case must report case-specific details to the commission, including counsel assigned, time pending, victim count, discovery status, outstanding motions, and mitigation-specialist information.