(A) All members of the commission shall at all times act in the best interest of indigent defendants who are receiving legal representation pursuant to the provisions of this chapter.
(B) All members of the commission are entitled to vote on all matters before the commission unless otherwise provided by law or by rules adopted by the commission concerning conflicts of interest.
(C) Each member of the commission shall serve until a successor has been appointed. Removal of commission members is for cause and must be in accordance with policies and procedures adopted by the commission.
(D) Unless otherwise provided in this article, a quorum is a majority of the members of the commission who are currently serving in office, and decisions of the commission are determined by majority vote of the members present, except that a majority of the entire commission must approve the appointment or removal of a circuit public defender or the executive director for cause.
(E) The commission shall meet at least quarterly and at other times and places as it deems necessary or convenient for the performance of its duties and shall keep and maintain minutes of all commission meetings.
(F) The commission shall elect such officers, other than the chairperson, from the members of the commission as it deems necessary and shall adopt rules for the transaction of its business as it desires. Elected officers shall serve for a term of one year and may be removed without cause by a vote of two-thirds of the members of the entire commission and for cause by a majority vote of the entire commission. The chairperson shall retain a vote on all matters except those in which the chairperson has a conflict of interest.
(G) The members of the commission shall receive no compensation for their services but will be reimbursed for their actual expenses incurred in the performance of their duties as members of the commission. Expenses incurred by the commission must be paid from the general operating budget of the commission.
(H) The commission shall approve the development and improvement of programs which provide legal representation to indigent persons and juveniles accused of violations of criminal law.
(I) The commission shall approve and implement programs, services, rules, policies, procedures, regulations, and standards as may be necessary or advisable to fulfill the purposes and provisions of this article in the delivery of indigent services. This includes, but is not limited to, standards for:
(1) maintaining and operating circuit public defender offices, including requirements regarding qualifications, training, and size of the legal and support staff of the offices and access to data and records, including business records, in each circuit public defender office;
(2) prescribing minimum experience, training, and other qualifications for appointed counsel where a conflict of interest arises between the public defender and an indigent person;
(3) public defender and appointed counsel caseloads;
(4) the qualifications, employment, and compensation of public defenders and other circuit public defender office personnel, based on job description, education, training, and experience;
(5) the performance of public defenders and appointed counsel representing indigent persons;
(6) procedures for prescribing qualifications and performance of independent counsel representing indigent persons in both trial and appellate courts, whether by contract or court appointment;
(7) providing and compensating experts, investigators, and other persons who provide services necessary for the effective representation of indigent persons;
(8) determining indigence and for assessing and collecting the costs of legal representation and related services;
(9) compensation of attorneys appointed to represent indigent persons pursuant to this chapter;
(10) removing a circuit public defender for cause;
(11) a uniform definition of a "case" for purposes of determining caseload statistics; and
(12) accepting contractual indigent defense representation.
HISTORY: 2005 Act No. 103, Section 2, eff July 1, 2005; 2007 Act No. 108, Section 7, eff June 21, 2007.