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Thursday, February 07, 2008
House OK's Bill To Detach Public Defender from Governor
Associated Press
SANTA FE — A proposal to make the state Public
Defender
Department more independent of the governor has passed the House and
gone to
the Senate.
The legislation creates an 11-member commission that
would
oversee the department and appoint the public defender, who now is
appointed by
the governor.
Supporters of the bill say the governor — who
effectively
sets law enforcement policy — should not also oversee the agency that
represents criminal defendants.
They say the change would strengthen a department
that is
underfunded and lacks resources, and would remove pressure — real or
perceived —
from any governor who wanted to appear tough on crime.
The right to a lawyer is guaranteed in the
constitution and
the state is obliged to provide a fair and vigorous defense for poor
defendants, said House Judiciary Chairman Al Park, D-Albuquerque, who
sponsored
the bill. There should be parity between prosecutors' and defenders'
offices,
he said.
"We really need to have a strong, equal public
defender
to ensure the success of the criminal justice system,'' Park said.
The bill was approved 58-4 on Wednesday.
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