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• To: BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
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FROM: CHARLES E. DIXON
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Interim County Administrator Costa
DATE: may 4, 1984 County
SUBJECT: CONFLICT DEFENSE SERVICES
SPECIFIC REQUEST(S) OR RECOMMENDATION(S) & BACKGROUND AND JUSTIFICATION
Recommendations:
1. Approve the contract with the Contra Costa County Bar Association for conflict
defense services and authorize the Chairman to execute the contract on behalf
of the County.
2. Direct the County Administrator to monitor the implementation of the contract
and, through the Oversight Committee, continue to explore further efficiencies
in justice system processing that may reduce the cost of indigent defense,
including cost recovery efforts.
Background:
Prior Board action on this item dates back to February 7, 1983 when the Board directed the
County Administrator to organize a Task Force to explore new system options -for Contra
Costa County to use in handling indigent defense cases involving Public Defender conflicts
of interest. Based on that Task Force's recommendation in June of 1983, your Board acted
on July 11, 1983 to authorize the County Administrator to solicit a proposal from the Bar
Association for indigent conflict defense services. In September of 1983, the Bar Associa-
tion submitted a proposal to the County, which was subsequently modified on November 13
and supplemented by proposed Rules and Regulations. Since then, staff from the offices of
the County Administrator, Public Defender and County Counsel have been meeting with Bar
Association representatives to negotiate within the context of guidelines and specifications
contained in the Task Force's report and prior Board Orders. The resulting contract,
including Rules and Regulations and administrative budget, are being recommended for your
approval.
For fiscal year 1984/85, the budget for conflict defense services in budget unit 0248 has
been set at $1,199,500. This budget unit will be divided into two programs:
1. Bar Association contract ($650,000) which will support indigent defense activity
during the fiscal year on new conflict cases opened on July 1, 1984 and thereafter.
2. Assigned Defense Services ($549,500) . This amount provides for those conflict
cases which already have counsel assigned by the Courts prior to July 1,. 1984.
The 1984/85 target is $299,500 more than the $900,000 budgeted for 1983/84. It is,
however, less than the 1982/83 expenditure of $1,328,059, and projected 1983/84 expenditure
of approximately $1,350,000. It is also comparable to the estimated cost of establishing
a second Public Defender's Office to handle conflict cases. Assuming continuation of the
contract with the Bar, the amount required would increase the second year whil unds for
assigned defense would decrease as these older cases are concluded, but the tal hould
remain approximately the same.
CONTINUED ON ATTACHMENT: X YES SIGNATURE:
y RECOMMENDATION OF COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR RECOMMENDATION OF BOARD COMMITTE
X APPROVE OTHER
SIGNATURE(S)
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Conflict Defense Services
Page 2
May 4, 1984
Major elements of the contract include the following:
1. The Bar Association will be handling all indigent conflict cases, with no
exclusions.
2. Assignment of attorneys will be made centrally on a rotational basis where
feasible, by an administrator from attorney panels.
3. Attorney panels will be organized according to experience qualifications
for different types of cases.
4. Payment to attorneys will be made according to a fee schedule for the type of
case. Approval of attorney fee payments will be made by a Bar Association Committee.
5. The Bar Association and participating attorneys will cooperate with County
cost recovery efforts.
6. An Oversight Committee will be established to deal with policy issues that
develop from implementation of the contract. This Committee will include a
representative of Municipal Court, Superior Court, County Administrator's
Office, Public Defender and two representatives of the Bar Association.
The new program promises cost savings over the existing method of court appointed counsel.
Built into the contract and the Rules and Regulations are the following cost and opera-
tional efficiencies:
1. A countywide (Municipal and Superior Courts) fee schedule for attorney services
which has greater differentiation than any currently existing in the County.
2. The program will be administered centrally with consistent policies and procedures
in all Courts.
3. All misdemeanor cases in each judicial district will be assigned weekly to one
attorney, who-will be setting all subsequent appearances (excluding jury trials)
on same calendar, to be reimbursed for one appearance. An analogous program
will be developed for juvenile court.
4. The Bar Association will be establishing a list of approved investigators and
expert witnesses who will agree to work for a fixed rate. Attorneys wishing to
use expert witnesses not on the list will require prior approval by a
7-member Committee of the Association.
5. Activity and program statistics will be maintained and reported to the County
on a monthly basis to document program operation and to use for future budget
development.
The Bar Association's Board of Directors met on May 3, 1984 and approved the contract.
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Conflict Defense Services
Page 3
Action of the Board on May 8, 1984 Approved as Recommended X
Other �t—
The Board approved the recommendations set forth on the first
page and also amendments to the contract as requested by the
Bar Association relative to securing the registration of a suffi -
cient number of attorneys to render services under the contract
and the voidance of the contract if this condition is not met by
June 15, 1984 ; the number of panels to which attorneys can be
assigned ; deletion of certain language from Class 2 categorical
definitions of crimes ; and replacement of the word "homicide"
with "murder" in the section pertaining to experience requirement
for Class One cases .
The Board also expressed appreciation to the negotiating team for
its work in developing said contract .
VOTE OF SUPERVISORS
X UNANIMOUS (ABSENT ) 1 HEREBY CERTIFY THAT THIS IS A TRUE
AYES: NOES: A-ND CORRECT COPY OF AN ACTION TAKEN
ABSENT: ABSTAIN: AND ENTERED ON THE MINUTES OF THE BOARD
OF SUPERVISORS ON THE DATE SHOWN.
CC: CJA to distribute ATTESTED May 8 , 1984
J.R. OLSSON, COUNTY CLERK
AND EX OFFICIO CLERK OF THE BOARD
M382/7.43 BY DEPUTY
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