[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Commissioners of York County 5-25-1994 as Ord. No.
94-2. Amendments noted where applicable.]
Whenever the law provides for the appointment of a solicitor
by an elected or appointed official, if a lawsuit is brought against
that elected or appointed official in his official capacity, the primary
responsibility to provide a defense shall be that of the appointed
solicitor. It is recognized and acknowledged that the solicitor's
compensation does not contemplate compensation for protracted legal
defense of the elected or appointed official who appoints him. Should
such a lawsuit be filed, the solicitor and the official shall appear
before the Commissioners and, if necessary, the Salary Board for appropriate
increase of compensation to acknowledge the additional effort required
to defend the elected official.
A.
Should an elected or appointed official be charged with a criminal
offense, neither the appointed solicitor nor any County Solicitor
nor any other official of the county shall provide a cost-free defense.
Criminal matters shall be considered the personal responsibility of
the officer so charged.[1]
B.
If a person accused of criminal wrongdoing is vindicated by an official
refusing to process charges or by judgment or acquittal, the county
may and, in the case of an acquittal, shall, if the acquittal was
on the merits where no evidence was suppressed and all relevant facts
were presented to the jury, contribute part or all of the costs incurred
by the public official, whether he is in office, or not, at the time
a request is made for reimbursement. The county shall not be required
to pay an official's attorney's fees at a rate greater than
the hourly rate provided for court-appointed counsel unless extraordinary
circumstances are shown to be present. Any request for payment of
said counsel fees must be made within 30 days of acquittal.
Should the solicitor not feel competent, or for any reason not
be able to represent the elected or appointed official, the office
holder shall make a request to the county to provide the services
of either a County Solicitor or an independent counsel at compensation
determined by the Commissioners to be appropriate and lawful.
All elected and appointed officials and any county employees
who are named as defendants in civil lawsuits (any noncriminal proceeding),
filed in state or federal court or any administrative board or agency,
when the civil action arises out of the manner in which the elected
or appointed official or officer or employee shall have conducted
the duties of his office, then and in that event the county shall
provide a solicitor or attorney to represent said individual who has
been named in the civil proceeding.
The county shall endeavor to obtain and maintain adequate insurance
to provide the county with adequate protection for all of the county's
officers and employees. However, the failure to obtain such insurance
does not hereby create any obligation on the part of the county to
do so.
Nothing in this chapter is intended or shall be interpreted
to waive or modify any immunity provided to the county by law.
