An Act To Amend Title 29 Of The Delaware Code Relating To The Office Of Defense Services.
Summary
SB 172 amends Title 29 of the Delaware Code to update provisions governing the Office of Defense Services. The bill sets the Chief Defender’s term at eight years for appointments made after July 1, 2015, authorizes the Chief Defender to appoint the staff needed to carry out the office’s duties, and requires assistant public defenders and attorneys contracting with the Office of Conflicts Counsel to be licensed in Delaware. It also confirms that the Chief Defender controls compensation for appointed personnel, while requiring assistant attorneys’ pay to be at least on par with Deputy Attorneys General.
The bill further restricts outside legal practice by salaried attorneys employed by the Office of Defense Services. Attorneys already maintaining private practices as of January 1, 2015 are exempt until May 28, 2025, after which all salaried attorneys in the office are barred from private law practice. The synopsis states that the measure is intended to codify Delaware’s longstanding practice of paying public defenders comparably to prosecutors and to align state law with American Bar Association guidance on public defense compensation.
Impact
SB 172 would directly amend Section 4603 of Title 29, affecting the structure, compensation, and outside-employment rules for the Office of Defense Services. It would formalize parity in pay between assistant public defenders and Deputy Attorneys General, preserve the Chief Defender’s authority over staffing and salaries, and impose a statewide prohibition on private practice for salaried defense attorneys after the transition period. The bill primarily affects public defenders, conflict counsel attorneys, and the administration of indigent defense in Delaware.
Sentiment
The available materials suggest generally favorable sentiment toward the bill. The synopsis frames it as a codification of existing Delaware practice and as consistent with widely accepted public-defense standards, emphasizing equal justice and parity with prosecutors. No committee transcript or vote record is available here, so there is no evidence of recorded opposition or divided sentiment in the provided materials.
Contention
The main policy issue is compensation parity and whether public defenders should be paid at least as much as Deputy Attorneys General. Supporters present this as necessary to attract and retain qualified defense attorneys and to ensure fairness in the criminal justice system. A secondary point is the restriction on salaried attorneys maintaining private practices, though the bill includes a long transition period for attorneys who already had such practices. No specific opposing arguments are included in the provided record.
Relating to selection of an attorney by an indigent parent as attorney ad litem for the parent in certain suits affecting the parent-child relationship.