Key state lawmakers on Thursday backed off plans to transfer a large chunk of the state's public defender system over to county control.
House Judiciary Non-Civil Committee Chairman Rich Golick (R-Smyrna) made the announcement after being assured his committee would receive a proposal that would contain "runaway costs" and maintain an effective defender system. Leaders representing the Georgia Public Defender Standards Council and the State Bar of Georgia agreed to present such legislation by the end of the year.
Golick also strongly criticized lawyers who have filed lawsuits against the struggling system, saying they "are more concerned with bringing the system to its knees." The groups have no interest in finding fiscally responsible solutions that help move the system forward and instead file headline-grabbing lawsuits that let them "pound their chests in righteous indignation."
Sara Totonchi, executive director of the Southern Center for Human Rights, which has led the litigation, said the suits have been brought on behalf of hundreds of Georgians who had not been provided lawyers to represent them as required by law.
"We have only sought to strengthen the system," Totonchi said after the hearing. "The state hasn't been providing lawyers to people entitled to counsel. It's unconstitutional. It's unfair."
Earlier this week, Golick floated a much-anticipated proposal to turn over thousands of indigent defense cases to county control.
The proposal would have imposed a $100 fine -- on top of other fines and fees -- in criminal cases to pay for the transfer of "conflict" cases to county-run programs. Under this proposal, state-salaried public defenders would have represented one defendant in a multi-defendant indictment, with counties assigning lawyers for the other co-defendants.
According to defender council projections, there will be more than 9,000 conflict cases during the current fiscal year at a cost of $8.1 million -- almost 20 percent of the agency's $40.9 million budget. The state defender system, which began representing poor people accused of crimes in 2005, replaced an uneven system of county-run programs, many of which were found unable to provide adequate representation.
At Thursday's hearing, Golick expressed concern about the expense of defending conflict cases. "We can't keep on the current path," he said. "It's just unsustainable."
Golick urged leaders of the defender system and the state's legal system to find a workable solution. "We're going to give this one last chance," he said.
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