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Appellate public defender asks for in‑house deputy to reduce costly outside contracts
Summary
The Office of the State Appellate Public Defender asked the Joint Finance‑Appropriations Committee for funding to add a deputy appellate public defender to absorb non‑capital appeals and reduce the office’s reliance on higher‑cost contracted firms.
The Office of the State Appellate Public Defender requested funding for an additional deputy appellate public defender during a Joint Finance‑Appropriations Committee hearing. Budget analyst Christopher Lahoset told the committee the new position would handle non‑capital felony, misdemeanor and juvenile district and post‑conviction appeals and that hiring an in‑house attorney would be less expensive than continuing to contract overflow cases.
Why it matters: The office reported a sustained increase in appeals since the pandemic and said contracting overflow cases is more costly and can extend across fiscal years. Committee members pressed the director on turnover,…
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