Form SPDO Survey of Public Defender Offices, 2007

2007 Census of Public Defender Offices

GENERAL INFORMATION

1. What is the geographic jurisdiction served by this office (Mark (X) one only)

 Part of a county (e.g. a city or town)

 Entire county

 Multiple counties (If this program serves multiple counties, please list the names of the counties served.)

a.___________________________________

b___________________________________

c.___________________________________

d.___________________________________

e.___________________________________

 Judicial district/judicial circuit

 Entire state

 Other (Describe)________________________________________

2. Your public defender office is…. (Mark (X) one only):

 Part of the state or county judicial branch

 Part of the state or county executive branch

 An independent and/or nonprofit organization

 Other (Describe)_________________________________________

3. During the past year, did any indigent defense programs, outside of this office, serve this jurisdiction?

 Yes

 No (Skip to question #4)

3a. Please mark all that apply

 Public Defender

 Assigned Counsel

 Contract Program

TOTAL OPERATING EXPENDITURES

(The total budget of the office for indigent defense functions, excluding any fixed capital costs incurring during the year)

4. During your past fiscal year, how much did your office spend to provide criminal defense services to indigent defendants?

$___________________.00  Estimate

5. Do the total operating expenditures entered in # 4 include funding for any of the following?

Yes No Type of Service

  A. Expert services

  B. Investigator services

  C. Interpreter services

  D. Transcript services

  E. Social services

6. What percentage of the total operating expenditures entered in # 4 came directly from each of the following sources? (If you are unable to provide the actual percentage, please provide your best estimate. If none, enter “0”.)

Percentage Source

______% A. State

______% B. County

______% C. City or town

______% D. Federal government (including Byrne Justice Assistance Grants)

______% E. Other (Describe)______________________________________

_______________________

100% Total

STAFFING

7-8. How many of the following types of staff members currently work in your office? “Part time” refers to any employee who works fewer hours than the program’s standard work week. (If you are unable to provide the actual number, please provide your best estimate. If none, enter “0”.)

Primary Responsibility Number full-time Number part-time

A. Chief public defender _______________ ________________ B. Assistant public defenders ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­_______________ ________________

• Any employee of the public defender program licensed to practice law or who has applied for admission to the bar, and who primarily litigates cases. Excludes attorneys in non-litigating positions.

C. Supervisory attorneys _______________ ________________

• Attorneys in managerial positions who litigate cases.

D. Managers _______________ ________________

• Attorneys or non-attorneys in primarily managerial or supervisory positions who do not litigate cases.

E. Investigators (not on contract) _______________ ________________

F. Social workers ­­­_______________ ________________

G. Paralegals _______________ ________________

H. Indigency Screeners/Analysts _______________ ________________

I. Support Staff _______________ ________________

• includes administrative staff, computer personnel, fiscal officers, and training directors

J. Law Student Interns _______________ ________________

K. Other (Describe)___________ _______________ ________________

___________________________

L. Total Staff _______________ ________________

9-10. Please enter your office salary schedule for the following full-time positions at the end of the last fiscal year.

No Such

Position Minimum Maximum Position

A. Assistant Public Defenders $________.00 $_________.00 

(entry level)

B. Assistant Public Defenders $________.00 $_________.00 

(at least 5 years experience)

C. Supervisory attorneys $________.00 $_________.00 

11. What is the average length of service for assistant public defenders in your office?

___________years

12. How long has the current chief public defender been in office?

______________years

______________months

13. How is the chief public defender in your office selected? (Mark (X) one only)

 Elected

 Gubernatorial appointment

 Judicial appointment

 Appointment by county executive

 Appointment by county board

 Appointment by program advisory board

 Appointment by independent board or commission

 Other (Describe)________________________________________

14. Does the chief public defender in your office carry a caseload?

 Yes → Please specify the number of cases that the chief public defender was assigned during the last fiscal year

­­­­­­­­­­_______________ cases

 No

15. What was the annual salary of the chief public defender in your office during the past fiscal year?

$_________________.00

CASELOAD

16. Does your office have the responsibility for handling the following types of cases for indigent defendants? (Mark (X) yes/no for each type of case)

Yes No Criminal Cases

  A. Felony capital (death penalty)

  B. Felony non-capital

  C. Misdemeanors that carry a jail sentence

  D. Misdemeanors that do not carry a jail sentence

  E. Ordinance infraction

  F. Appeal

  G. Probation revocation

  H. Parole revocation

Juvenile Related Cases

  I. Juvenile delinquency

  J. Delinquency appeals

Yes No

  K. Juvenile proceeded against in adult criminal court

  L. Juvenile status offense (e.g. underage liquor law violation, truancy)

  M. Juvenile transfer/waiver hearings

  N. Child protection/dependency cases (Child-in-Need-of-Aid)

  O. Termination of parental rights

Civil Cases

  P. Mental commitment

  Q. State post-conviction/habeas corpus

  R. Federal habeas corpus

17. How many of each of the following types of cases involving indigent defendants did your program receive during the past year? (If you are unable to provide the actual number, please provide your best estimate. If none, enter “0”.)

Type of Case Number of Cases Received

A. Felony-Capital

(Death Penalty) ___________________cases  Estimate

B. Felony-Non-Capital ___________________cases  Estimate

C. Misdemeanor cases ___________________cases  Estimate

E. Total Juvenile-Related ___________________cases  Estimate

(including juvenile delinquency

delinquency appeals, status

offenses, transfer/waiver hearings)

F. Total Civil _______________________cases  Estimate

(including mental

commitment, state post-

conviction/habeas corpus,

federal habeas corpus)

G. TOTAL CASES ____________________cases  Estimate

(Sum of A-F)

18. Did your office handle any of the following types of identity theft cases during the past year?

Yes No Charges

  A. Credit card fraud

  B. Internet identity theft

  C. Embezzlement charges

  D. Mail fraud

  E. Bank fraud

  F. Stolen checks

19. Does your office have any formally established caseload limits?

 Yes

 No

20. On a regular basis, does your office have the ability to request caseload assistance from outside defense services such as contract or pro bono attorneys.

 Yes

 No

Non-Capital Felony Representation

21. During the past year did your office handle non-capital felony cases?

Yes

 No (skip to question # 24)

22. In non-capital felony cases, what is the requirement for when a representative from your office (attorney, investigator, paralegal etc.) must first contact the client? (Mark (x) only one.)

 Within 24 hours of appointment

 Within 48 hours of appointment

 Within 72 hours of appointment

 Prior to the first court appearance or detention hearing

 At first court appearance or detention hearing

 Prior to the preliminary hearing

 At the preliminary hearing

 At trial

 Other (Describe)________________________________________________

23. How are non-capital felony cases routinely handled by your office (Mark (x) only one.)

 Assigned to an attorney who handles the case through disposition

(vertical representation)

 Handled by one attorney at arraignment, then assigned to another attorney for the duration of the case

 Assigned to different attorneys at various stages of the case (horizontal representation)

 Other (Describe)­__________________________________________________

Death Penalty Representation

24. During the past year did your office handle capital cases?

Yes

 No (skip to question # 28)

24. During the past fiscal year, how many death penalty cases did your office handle in

which a jury was empaneled? (If you can only provide an estimate, please mark (X) next to your answer)

Number of cases: ___________________

25. Does your office have a specialized death penalty unit for the following types of

death penalty cases? (Mark one (x) for each type of case)

Office Doesn’t

Type of Case Yes No Provide Representation

A. Trial level    B. Direct appeal   

C. State post-conviction   

D. Federal habeas corpus   

27. During the past year, what were the total expenditures for death penalty case

representation in your office? (If you can only provide an estimate, please mark (X) next to your answer. If none, enter “0".)

$________________ .00.  Estimate

INDIGENCY DETERMINATION

28. In your jurisdiction, are formal, written criteria used in the indigency determination process?

 Yes

 No (Skip to question #32)

29. Who is responsible for this screening? (Mark (x) all that apply)

A.  Public defender or other indigent defense provider

B.  Judge

C.  Court Personnel (including AOC personnel)

D.  Pretrial services or probation officers

E.  Other (Describe)______________________________________________
______________________________________________________________­­­­

30. Are any of the following sources used as grounds with which to qualify a defendant for public counsel representation?

Yes No

  A. Income level

  B. Receipt of public assistance

  C. Amount of debt

  D. Residence in a public mental hospital or other correctional institution

  E. Judge’s decision based on defendant testimony

  F. Unsworn application or statement from the defendant

  G. Sworn application or statement from the defendant

  H. Other (Describe)_________________________________

_________________________________________________

COST RECOVERY/RECOUPMENT

31. Does your court system require indigent criminal defendants to pay expenses or fees?

 Yes

 No (Skip to question # 33)

32. Which of the following fees might a criminal indigent defendant be required to pay?

Yes No Fee Type

  A. Application or administrative fee

  B. Attorney fee

  C. Court related expense

  D. Facilities/Jail fees

  E. Standard fee established by statute

  F. Expert witness fee

  G. Fees assessed post-conviction

  H. Other (Describe)_________________________________

_________________________________________________

STANDARDS AND GUIDELINES

33. Does your office have any written standards or guidelines pertaining to indigent defense representation in any of the following areas?

Yes No Type of Area

  A. Personnel policies and procedures

  B. Attorney qualifications

  C. Caseload/workload

  D. Conflict of interest

  E. Training

  F. Attorney performance

  G. Indigency screening

  H. Cost recovery/recoupment

  I. Compensation for court-appointed counsel

  J. Administration of indigent defense services in your jurisdiction

  K. Compensation/procedures for non-attorney services

  L. Other (specify)_______________________________________

  M. No written standards or guidelines (Skip to question # 38)

34. What was the source(s) of these standards? (Mark (X) to all that apply)

A.  County

B  State supreme court

C.  Statute

D.  Governing Board/Commission

E.  State or local bar association

F.  State indigent defense office

G.  Public defender organization

H.  Your office

I.  Other (specify) _______________________________________

35. Is compliance with these standards voluntary or mandatory?

 Voluntary (Skip to question #38)

 Mandatory

36. Who is responsible for monitoring compliance with these standards? (Mark (x) all that apply)

A.  State supreme court

B.  presiding court judge

B.  Indigent defense commission

C.  Your office

D.  State or local bar association

E.  Other (Describe)__________________________________________

37. Is compliance with these standards tied to funding?

 Yes

 No

TRAINING

38. Does your office require specialized training for attorneys in the following areas?

Yes No Type of Case

  A. Death penalty trial defense

  B. Death penalty appeal

  C. Non-capital felony

  D. Misdemeanor

  E. Juvenile delinquency

  F. Juvenile transfers to adult criminal court

  G. Appellate cases

  H. Dependency/mental illness cases

  H. Other (Describe)__________________________________

__________________________________________________

COMPUTER RESOURCES –

39. Does your office utilize an electronic Management Information System (MIS) program?

 Yes

 No (Skip to question #46)

40. Are any of the following types of information gathered as components of your MIS? (Mark (X) all that apply)

Yes No Type of Data

  A. Referral and assignment information

  B. Client background information

  B. Client criminal history record

  C. Case information (e.g. charges, facts, etc)

  D. Information on other persons involved in the case

  E. Client contacts

  F. Court information

  G. Criminal justice personnel information

  H. Attorney schedule

  I. Attorney case history

  J. Social worker information

  K. Office accounting

  L. Other (Describe)______________________________________

______________________________________________________

42. Does your office have access to any of the following online resources?

Yes No Resource

  A. JustWare Defender

  B. Westlaw

  C. Lexis Nexis

  D. Juris Pro

  E. Native Legal Net

  F. Other (Describe)______________________________________

______________________________________________________

41. Is your office part of an integrated computerized system with any of the following criminal justice agencies?

Yes No Resource

  A. Law enforcement

  B. Courts

  C. Pretrial service agency

  D. Prosecutor’s office

  E. Corrections

  F. Other (Describe)______________________________________

______________________________________________________

CONFLICTS

43. In felony cases involving more than one indigent defendant, is the second defendant also represented by your program?

 Yes

 No

44. In felony cases involving more than one indigent defendant, when are separate counsel appointed for each defendant? (Mark (x) all that apply)

A.  In every instance of co-defendant, at all proceedings

B.  In every instance of co-defendant, at all proceedings except for first appearance

C.  When the initially appointed attorney requests separation of defendants

D.  When requested by defendants

E  At the direction of the court

F.  Other (Describe)___________________________________________

45. If your office cannot provide representation due to a conflict of interest or insufficient staff, how is a conflict attorney obtained (Mark (x) all that apply)

A.  Jurisdictional conflict public defender office

B.  State conflict public defender office

C.  Previously established contract with private attorney

D.  Case-by-case contract with private attorney

E  Assigned counsel program administered through your office

F.  Assigned counsel program administered through the court

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