[Adopted 3-3-1998 by Ord. No. 1-98]
There is hereby established the position and
office of the Municipal Public Defender for the Municipal Court of
Frankford, Lafayette, Branchville and Sandyston, which position shall
be filled by the appointment through the unanimous consent and memorializing
resolutions of the governing bodies of Frankford, Lafayette, Branchville
and Sandyston. The term of the office of Public Defender shall be
one year, commencing January 1 of the calendar year and concluding
December 31 of that same year. The term of office of the Public Defender
for the initial year of that position shall commence from the date
of appointment and conclude on December 31 of the same year as the
appointment.
Eligibility for services of the Municipal Public
Defender shall be determined by the Municipal Court on the basis of
the need of the defendant, except as otherwise provided by state law.
The need shall be measured according to N.J.S.A. 2A:153A-14 and guidelines
promulgated by the New Jersey Supreme Court.
Compensation for the Municipal Public Defender
and the payment terms thereof, shall be set by ordinances of the participating
municipalities following agreement between them regarding said compensation
and payment terms. The ordinances and agreement setting compensation
shall also set forth any additional compensation to be paid for interlocutory
appeals in the Superior Court.
Any person who applies for representation by
the Municipal Public Defender, or a Court approved counsel shall pay
an application fee of $200 for the services of the Municipal Public
Defender. In accordance with guidelines promulgated by the Supreme
Court, the Municipal Court may waive any required application fee,
in whole 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.
Application fees collected pursuant to this
article shall be dedicated to a fund administered by the Court Administrator
of the Joint Municipal Court. The moneys in said fund shall be used
exclusively to meet the cost incurred by the municipalities in providing
the services of the Municipal Public Defender and, when required,
for expert and lay investigation and testimony requested by the Public
Defender; provided, however, that the fund shall not be available
for, and municipalities shall not be obligated to pay for, expert
and lay investigations or testimony until after March 22, 1999.
A.
This article shall become effective on March 22, 1998,
and the position and office of Municipal Public Defender shall be
deemed to have been created on that date; however, the section of
this article regarding the required payment of an application fee
by a defendant for the appointment of a Municipal Public Defender
shall take effect immediately, and the Court Administrator may implement
and collect the application fee immediately upon adoption of the required
ordinances by all of the participating municipalities.
B.
This article will be effective only after identical
ordinances have been passed by the governing bodies of the Township
of Lafayette, the Borough of Branchville and the Township of Frankford
and upon proper publication and completion of all procedures required
under the law.
