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State review finds structural gaps in Mariposa County—s indigent defense; board asks staff to explore options
Summary
A state public defender review identified structural weaknesses in Mariposa County—s contract-based indigent defense system and recommended options including a public defender office, regionalization, or managed assigned counsel. The Board directed county administration to return with options and budgets.
A review by the Office of the State Public Defender (OSPD) presented to the Mariposa County Board of Supervisors on March 18 found structural deficiencies in the county—s indigent defense delivery and urged the county to explore alternatives to its current contract-attorney model.
OSPD attorney Bridget Brady told the board that Mariposa——s system relies on three independent contract attorneys with no central leadership, office space, staff, or consistent budgeting. "This is just a report about concerns that are structural in nature and have to do with your system and not any of the players in it," Brady said, noting state and national standards for public defense.
The report compared spending and capacity across departments, saying the district attorney—s office receives more than double the funding of indigent defense…
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