The Michigan Indigent Defense Commission met on December 17, 2019.  At that meeting, a short video detailing the Commission’s success over the past year was shown with highlights including the distribution of $87 million in state funding to improve indigent defense services statewide.

Watch the MIDC’s 2019 Year in Review here.

The MIDC’s next meeting will be on February 11, 2020.

This October marked the beginning of the second year of implementation of the MIDC standards across Michigan.  In the first year, the Commission distributed over $87.6 million among the 134 local indigent defense systems supporting changes such as:

• Increased attorney fees and removals of capped services in many systems;
• The availability of nearly $10 million to fund experts or investigators for indigent clients;
• The creation of sixteen new public defender offices; and
• The training of nearly two thousand criminal defense attorneys accepting assignments statewide, many of whom exceeded the annually required 12 hours of CLE.

Moving into FY20, the State of Michigan’s budget provides for over $80 million to support all indigent defense systems.  The MIDC has approved almost all the plans for FY20, with the final nine systems up for review during upcoming meetings. Finally, contracts for the approved plans are being formed now and should be ready for distribution soon, with an effective date of Oct. 1, 2019 to ensure no interruption of services to indigent clients.

Moving Forward: Standards 5 & 7
Since 2018, the MIDC has approved 8 standards for indigent defense systems. Standards 1-4 have received final approval by the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA), as required under the MIDC Act.  While only the changes related to Standards 1-4 are currently mandated for local systems, the MIDC has welcomed and funded progress toward the pending standards in many systems, including increased attorney fees or separating maintenance of attorney contracts away from the judiciary.

To encourage forward momentum, the MIDC voted at its October 2019 meeting to request LARA approve Standard 5 (Independence from the Judiciary) separately from the other three remaining minimum standards. Standard 5 limits the role of the judiciary in public defense, ensuring that counsel for indigent defendants are “subject to judicial supervision only in the same manner and to the same extent as retained counsel or the prosecution.”  The independence of a public defense system is recognized as one of its most critical characteristics, safeguarding the integrity of the lawyer-client relationship. Standard 7, Qualification and Review, is also on the horizon.  This Standard establishes that “[d]efense counsel’s ability, training, and experience match the nature and complexity of the case to which he or she is appointed” and “counsel is systematically reviewed at the local level for efficiency and for effective representation according to MIDC standards.”  MCL 780.991(2)(c).  The MIDC staff is strongly encouraging local systems to engage its attorneys in training, mentoring, and second chair opportunities well-before Standard 7 becomes mandatory as eligibility for particular case assignments will be affected.

Fortunately, there are opportunities available for attorneys to gain more training and trial experience. Members of SADO’s Criminal Defense Resource Center are provided with a plethora of training opportunities, including a network connecting seasoned defense attorneys with newer attorneys for mentoring and second-chair opportunities.  The MIDC is providing free multiple-day simulated trial experiences in areas of the state where trials are uncommon.  In the first year, MIDC held 6 trainings in Northern, Western and Mid-Michigan and additional training sessions will be added this year in the South-Central region. Each program offers hands-on experience to the participants in the areas of voir dire, opening statements, cross examination, direct examination, and closing arguments.  For any training questions, please contact Marla McCowan, the MIDC’s Director of Training, Outreach and Support.

Determining Indigency: Help Needed from Criminal Defense Attorneys
The Michigan Indigent Defense Commission is in the process of developing a standard to determine a person’s eligibility for assigned counsel in adult criminal cases (also known as indigency screening). The Commission’s staff has prepared a survey seeking insight from criminal defense attorneys about retainers and fees. One possible consideration for the standard is whether the severity of the charge(s) should be connected to the ability to afford an attorney.   We need your help! All criminal defense attorneys are invited to take this short anonymous survey at this link.  The will allow the MIDC to hear directly from the field as it crafts its indigency standard.  Additionally, if you are interested in participating in a focus group about the development of this standard, please contact Regional Manager Nicole Smithson.

The MIDC will meet next on Tuesday, December 17, 2019. The Commission meets at 11:00 a.m. in Lansing and all meetings are open to the public. Information about upcoming meetings, or agendas and minutes from prior meetings can be found on our website.  We will continue to post progress about our work and any other developments about indigent defense in Michigan on our website as well.