[Added 1-25-1994 by Ord. No. 94-03; amended 3-22-1994 by Ord. No. 94-07; 4-26-1994 by Ord. No. 94-09; 11-25-1997 by Ord. No. 97-17]
There is hereby created in the Borough of Garwood
the position of Municipal Public Defender.
The Municipal Public Defender shall be an attorney
at law of the State of New Jersey.
The Municipal Public Defender shall be appointed
by the Mayor with the advice and consent of Council for a term of
one year beginning on the first day of January of each year, and until
such time as a successor is appointed and qualified. Any vacancy shall
be filled for the balance of the unexpired term only. The Municipal
Public Defender may be removed by the Mayor and Council for good cause
shown and after public hearing, upon due notice and an opportunity
to be heard.
A. It shall be the duty of the Municipal Public Defender
to represent, except in the case of temporary unavailability or conflict
of interest, any defendant charged with an offense in the Municipal
Court who is an indigent municipal defendant entitled to representation
pursuant to law. All necessary services and facilities of representation,
including both expert and lay investigation and testimony, as well
as other preparations, shall be provided in every case. The municipality
shall be responsible for payment for services pursuant to this section.
The factors of need and real value to a defendant may be weighed against
the financial constraints of the municipality in determining the necessary
services and facilities of representation. The final determination
as to necessity for services required pursuant to this section shall
be made by the Municipal Court Judge.
B. The Municipal Public Defender shall be responsible
for handling all phases of the defense, including, but not limited
to, discovery, pretrial and posttrial hearings, motions, removals
to Federal District Court and other collateral functions reasonably
related to the defense. As used in this section, "posttrial hearing"
shall not include de novo appeals in Superior Court.
C. The Municipal Public Defender shall represent an indigent
defendant charged in Municipal Court with a crime as specified in
N.J.S.A. 2B:12-18 or, if in the opinion of the Municipal Court Judge
there is a likelihood that the defendant, if convicted of any other
offense, will be subject to imprisonment or other consequence of magnitude,
the Municipal Public Defender shall represent an indigent defendant.
The Municipal Public Defender shall receive
as compensation or salary the amount set forth in the municipal budget
and salary ordinance.
Eligibility for services of the Municipal Public
Defender shall be determined by the Municipal Court Judge in accordance
with L. 1997, c. 256.
If the defendant has or reasonably expects to
have means to meet some part, though not all, of the cost of the services
rendered, the defendant shall be required to reimburse the municipality,
either by a single payment, or installments in such amounts as he
can reasonably be expected to pay; but no default or failure in making
payment shall effect or reduce the rendering of services.
A municipality shall have a lien on any property
to which the defendant shall have or acquire an interest for an amount
equal to the reasonable value of the services rendered to a defendant
pursuant to this article and L. 1997, c. 256, as calculated at the
same rate as the office of the Public Defender bills clients at that
time. To effectuate such a lien for the municipality, the Municipal
Attorney shall file a notice setting forth services rendered to the
defendant and the reasonable value thereof with the Clerk of the Superior
Court. The filing of the notice with the Clerk of the Superior Court
shall constitute a lien on property for a period of 10 years from
the date of filing, unless discharged sooner and, except for such
time limitations, shall have the force and effect of a judgment. Within
10 days of the filing of the notice, the Municipal Attorney shall
send by certified mail, or serve personally, a copy of the notice
with a statement of the date of filing to or upon the defendant at
the defendant's last known address. If the Municipal Attorney shall
fail to give notice, the lien is void.
At least monthly, the Municipal Public Defender
shall provide the Municipal Court Administrator with a listing of
the names of the defendants for whom cases have been completed, the
amount of time spent on each by the Municipal Public Defender, and
the defendant's last known address. At least monthly, the Municipal
Court Administrator shall transmit such information to the Municipal
Attorney.
The Municipal Attorney is authorized to compromise
and settle any claim for services performed pursuant to this article
whenever the financial circumstances of the person receiving the services
are such that, in the judgment of the Municipal Attorney, the best
interest of the state will be served by compromise and settlement.
The Municipal Attorney in the name of the municipality
may do all things necessary to collect any money due to the municipality
by way of reimbursement for services rendered by a Municipal Public
Defender pursuant to this article. The Municipal Attorney may enter
into arrangements with any state or county agency to handle collections
on a cost basis. The Municipal Attorney shall have all remedies and
proceedings available for collection which are available for or upon
the recovery of a judgment in a civil action and shall also be permitted
to collect counsel fees and costs from the defendant for such collection
action so that the same are not borne by the municipality.
Any person applying for representation in the
Municipal Court by the Municipal Public Defender shall pay an application
fee of $200. In accordance with guidelines promulgated by the New
Jersey Supreme Court, the Municipal Court may waive any required application
fee, in whole or in part, only if the Court determines, in its discretion,
upon a clear and convincing showing by the applicant that the application
fee represents an unreasonable burden on the person seeking representation.
The Municipal Court may permit a person to pay the application fee
over a specified period of time not to exceed four months.
Funds collected pursuant to §
14-28 shall be deposited in a dedicated fund administered by the Chief Financial Officer of the municipality. Such funds shall be used exclusively to meet the costs incurred in providing the services of a Municipal Public Defender, including, when required, expert and lay investigation and testimony, as provided in § 14-26A.
If there is a vacancy in the office of the Municipal
Public Defender, if the Municipal Public Defender is temporarily unavailable,
or if a finding of conflict of interest precludes the Municipal Public
Defender from representing an indigent defendant, the Municipal Prosecutor
may prosecute the offense if the Court appoints a qualified attorney
to represent the indigent defendant. Said attorney shall be selected
from a list of alternate public defenders. The attorneys on said list
shall be appointed from time to time by the Mayor with the advice
and consent of the Borough Council, and shall serve at the pleasure
of the Mayor. Unless rates are otherwise established by the municipality,
the attorney shall be entitled to compensation at the same rate as
attorneys hired by the Office of the Public Defender in conflict cases,
with payment to be made within 30 days. Once appointed, the attorney
shall carry out all duties of the Municipal Public Defender in connection
with the case that is the subject of the appointment. Any request
for payment shall be submitted by voucher, which shall be approved
by the Municipal Court Judge prior to payment.