Public Defense

State of Public Defense

Due to several biennia of underfunding the Board of Public Defense faces significant fiscal challenges.  The Board is employing strategies to contain costs:

• Negotiated 0% merit and 0% ATB increases for FY 10-11.

• Already struggling to close a $1.1 million funding gap for FY 2011.

• 14% fewer FTE attorney positions than two years ago.

• Instituted a hiring freeze on attorney positions, voluntary separation, salary savings leaves, and early retirements.

• Holding open Chief Public Defender and Managing Attorney positions.

• Cancelled annual public defender education conference for third straight year.

• Applied for $3 million in federal funding.  Received $880,000 in federal funding.

Efficiencies

• Working with prosecutors on developing fair use of ITV.

• Established an in-house committee to assess cost shifts to public defense caused by increased use of electronic disclosure, and find cost effective solutions.

• Participating in Criminal and Civil Justice Forums.

• Transitioned from traditional telephone service to voice-over-IP service.

• Moving statewide servers to a central location.

• Standardizing enhanced copiers.

• Standardizing printers within districts.

• Where possible negotiating more favorable lease agreements.

• Replacing the twelve year old case management system with a new system that will capture data that is already being entered in MNCIS (Minnesota Court Information System).

• Most training done in house with existing resources.

• Support staff used in lieu of attorney time where funding has permitted.

• On-line legal research developed in house.

• Most library materials eliminated replaced with on line access.

• Centralized computer purchasing saving money and staff resources.

Future

• The Board is continuing to work with its partners in the judicial system and the legislature to provide effective services in a cost efficient manner.

• There is no substitute for providing an attorney for the accused- the Sixth Amendment’s guarantee of counsel is a fundamental right.

• The mission of the Board of Public Defense is to provide quality criminal defense services to indigent defendants in the state of Minnesota through a cost-effective and efficient public defender system.