[Amended 12-10-1996 by Ord. No. 1277; 6-28-2005 by Ord. No. 1609]
There shall be a Municipal Court, which shall
have and exercise the limited civil and criminal jurisdiction prescribed
by law. Said Court shall have a Municipal Judge and a Municipal Prosecutor,
who shall be appointed by the Township Council unless otherwise provided
by law; the Municipal Prosecutor being appointed in accordance with
the provisions of P.L. 1996, c. 95, Section 14, as the same may hereafter
be amended. The Court shall have a Municipal Court Administrator,
who shall be appointed by the Township Manager and who shall perform
the functions assigned by the Judge and as may otherwise be provided
by law and the Administrative Director of the Courts. The Township
Manager may also appoint a Deputy Municipal Court Administrator.
[Added 2-23-1988 by Ord. No. 896; amended 2-10-1998 by Ord. No. 1327]
B.
Said appointment shall be made in accordance with
the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:69A-1 et seq. and shall be made annually
to be effective January 1 of each year beginning in the year 1988.
(1)
The Municipal Public Defender shall be an attorney-at-law
of the State of New Jersey in good standing, shall serve for one-year
terms from the date of appointment and may continue to serve in office
pending reappointment or appointment of a successor. The Public Defender
for Galloway Township may also serve in that position in other municipal
courts and need not be a resident of the municipality in which the
court is located where he serves as the Public Defender.
(2)
In accordance with applicable laws, ordinances and
resolutions, Galloway Township may appoint additional Municipal Public
Defenders as necessary to administer justice in a timely and effective
manner in its Municipal Court. Said additional appointment shall be
subject to the provisions of the applicable state statute.
(3)
In addition to any other means provided by law for
the removal from office of a public official, the Municipal Public
Defender may be removed by the governing body for good cause shown
and after a public hearing, and upon due notice and an opportunity
to be heard. Failure to reappoint a Municipal Public Defender for
a second or subsequent term does not constitute a removal from office
within the meaning of the applicable state statute. Municipal Public
Defenders may represent private clients in any municipality, including
the municipality where they act as a Municipal Public Defender, subject
to the Rules of Court governing the conduct of lawyers, judges and
court personnel.
C.
The duties of the Public Defender shall be as follows:
(1)
To represent, except in the case of temporary unavailability
or conflict of interest, any defendant charged with an offense in
Municipal Court who is an indigent municipal defendant entitled to
representation pursuant to state statute. 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 of services
pursuant to the existing state law. The factors of need and real value
to a defendant may be waived 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 shall be made by the court.
(2)
To be responsible for handling all phases of the defense,
including but not limited to discovery, pre-trial and post-trial hearings,
motions, removals to federal district court and other collateral functions
reasonably related to the defense. Post-trial hearings shall not include
de novo appeals in Superior Court.
(3)
The municipality shall not be responsible to pay for
expert and lay investigation or testimony for a period of one year
from March 22, 1998.
D.
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 Municipal Court appoints a qualified
attorney to represent the indigent defendant. 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 all the duties of
the Municipal Public Defender in connection with the case which is
the subject of the appointment.
E.
Funding.
(1)
An applicant for representation by a Municipal Public
Defender or court-approved counsel may be required by the Court to
pay an application fee of not more than $200, but only in an amount
necessary to pay the costs of the Municipal Public Defender's services.
In accordance with guidelines promulgated by the Supreme Court, the
Municipal Court may waive any required application fee, in all 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 specific period of time not to exceed four months.
(2)
The funds collected as application fees shall be deposited
in a dedicated fund administered by the Chief Financial Officer of
the municipality. Such fund shall be used exclusively to meet the
costs incurred in providing the services of the Municipal Public Defender,
including, when required, expert and lay investigation and testimony.
F.
Beginning in 1999, if it is determined by the Division
of Local Government Services during its review of a municipal budget
that the amount of money in a dedicated fund established as hereinabove
set forth exceeds by more than 25% the amount which the municipality
expended during the prior year providing the services of a Municipal
Public Defender, the amount in excess of the amount expended shall
be forwarded to the Criminal Disposition and Review Collection Fund
administered by Victims of Crime Compensation Board.
G.
Investigation of applicant; minor; partial and installment
payments.
(1)
The Municipal Court shall make an investigation of
the financial status of each defendant seeking representation and
shall have the authority to require a defendant to execute and deliver
written requests for authorizations required under applicable law
to provide the Court with access to the records of public or private
sources, otherwise confidential, as may be of aid in evaluating eligibility.
The Court is authorized to obtain information from any public record
office of the state or any subdivision or agency thereof on request
and without payment of the fees ordinarily required by law.
(2)
Whenever a person entitled to representation by a
Municipal Public Defender is under the age of 18 years, the eligibility
for services shall be determined on the basis of the financial circumstances
of the individual and the financial circumstances of the individual's
parents or legal guardians. Galloway Township shall be entitled to
recover the cost of legal services from the parents or legal guardians
in the manner hereinafter provided and the Municipal Court shall have
the authority to require parents or legal guardians to execute and
deliver the written requests for authorization required under applicable
law in order to provide the Court with access to records of public
or private sources, otherwise confidential, as may be of aid to it
in evaluating eligibility.
(3)
If the defendant has, or reasonably expects to have,
means to meet some part, though not all, of the costs of the services
rendered, the defendant shall be required to reimburse the municipality,
either in a single payment or in installments, in such amounts as
he can reasonably be expected to pay; but no default or failure in
making payment shall affect or reduce the rendering of services.
H.
Municipal lien.
(1)
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
under the state statute as calculated at the same rate as the Office
of the Public Defender bills clients at that time.
(2)
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, it 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 served personally, a copy
of the notice and a statement of the date of the 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.
(3)
The Municipal Attorney is authorized to compromise
and settle any claim for services performed pursuant to this act whenever
the financial circumstances of the person receiving the services are
such that, in the judgment of the Municipal Attorney, the best interests
of the state will be served by compromise and settlement.
(4)
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 state statute. The Municipal Attorney may enter
into arrangements with any state or county agency to handle collections
on a cost basis.
(5)
The Municipal Attorney shall have all the 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.
[1]
Editor's Note: Former § 5-25, Qualification
for representation by Public Defender, added 3-22-1994 by Ord. No.
1160, was repealed 6-28-2005 by Ord. No. 1609.
