There is hereby created the office of Public
Defender within the borough.
The Public Defender shall be an attorney at
law of the State of New Jersey but need not be a resident of the borough.
The Mayor shall nominate and, with the advice
and consent of the Council, appoint a Public Defender, including the
filling of a vacancy in the office which shall be for the unexpired
term only.
The term of office of the Public Defender shall
be for one year, commencing on January 1 and terminating on December
31 of the same year, and until a successor shall have been appointed
and qualified.
The duties of the Public Defender shall be to
defend all cases brought against indigent defendants in the Municipal
Court of the borough alleging violation of the criminal laws of the
State of New Jersey and the Motor Vehicle Statutes of the State of
New Jersey whenever such defendants are entitled to such representation
by law or whenever such representation is deemed necessary or desirable
in the interest of justice and in the discretion of the Judge of the
Municipal Court.
The salary of the Public Defender shall be on
a court appearance basis in such amounts as shall be fixed from time
to time by resolution of the Council.
[Added 10-12-2011 by Ord. No. 1647]
Any person applying for representation by a Municipal Public
Defender shall pay an application fee to the Municipal Court of not
more than $200. The Municipal Court Judge may waive any required application
fee, in whole or in part, if the Court determines, in its discretion,
that the application fee represents an unreasonable burden upon the
person seeking representation.