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Public Defender’s office seeks to renew conflict-counsel contract covering felony cases
Summary
The Office of Public Defense requested the commissioners place a contract with three local private attorneys on the agenda for approval. The contract covers conflict cases when the public defender’s office cannot represent an accused person; the county pays a per-case amount tied to felony-point weighting.
Ian (surname not specified), representing the Office of Public Defense, asked commissioners to place a standard conflict-counsel contract on an upcoming agenda. The contract would formalize ongoing agreements with three local private defense attorneys — Ted DeBray, Josh Goodday and Dan Morgan — who take cases when the public defender’s office has a conflict.
Ian explained the contract uses a per‑case payment structure that approximates $1,200 per felony case under the county’s customary point-weighting system, a rate that was raised from $1,000 in prior years. He said the $144,000 total shown in the materials is a budget estimate based on last year’s case mix; some high‑level felony work (Class A felonies) can fall outside the contract and are negotiated case‑by‑case.
The public‑defense representative said the contracted attorneys must meet standards comparable to county‑employed defense attorneys and that the contract includes reserve language allowing the county to stop assigning work if an attorney were the subject of a disciplinary action.
No formal vote was held Monday; the office asked to place the contract on next week’s agenda for formal approval.
