Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 39, September 25, 2024
(a) An Indigent Criminal Appeals
Management Program is hereby established to oversee and monitor the assigned
counsel program in the Fourth Judicial Department and to improve the delivery
of services of assigned appellate counsel to indigent criminal defendants.
(1) It shall be the goal of
the program to implement such improvements in the operation and staffs of the
legal aid and public defender offices in the Fourth Department so that existing
backlogs are eliminated and appeals assigned to such offices are perfected
promptly.
(2) It
shall be a goal of the program to implement such improvements in the operation
of the assigned counsel plans in the Fourth Department so that a disposition is
made on all appeals previously assigned to private attorneys participating in
such plans and so that future appeals so assigned are perfected
promptly.
(3) To
assure that these goals are met it shall be the duty of all assigned counsel,
including the public defender and legal aid offices, to perfect appeals within
a deadline of 120 days after the receipt of the transcripts unless that
deadline is extended for good cause shown upon application to the associate
justice assigned to chair the council in the appropriate judicial district.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, the associate justice assigned to chair such
council may set a different deadline for any particular appeal.
(b) In order to
achieve the goals specified in subdivision (a) of this section an Indigent
Criminal Appeals Council is created in each of the three judicial districts
comprising the Fourth Department. The presiding justice shall designate an
associate justice to chair each council which shall consist of the permanent
members specified by this section, in addition to such other individuals as the
presiding justice deems appropriate. The permanent members shall include:
(1) the attorneys in charge of
the appeals divisions of the public defender and legal aid offices of those
counties in which such offices are assigned to perfect appeals or, if no such
division exists, the public defender or attorney in charge of such
office;
(2) the
assigned counsel administrator of those counties in which criminal appeals are
assigned to private counsel participating in an assigned counsel plan pursuant
to County Law, section 722(3);
(3) the assistant district attorneys in
charge of the appeals divisions of the district attorney's offices or if no
such division exists, the district attorney; and
(4) the administrative court
reporter for each judicial district.
(c) The councils shall meet at
such times as the presiding justice or chairpersons deem appropriate. The
presiding Justice shall furnish to each chairperson at least five days prior to
each meeting an agenda of matters to be discussed. The chairperson may add such
additional matters to the agenda as are deemed appropriate. The duties of the
councils shall include but not be limited to the following:
(1) the evaluation of the
efficiency of the operation of the legal aid societies and public defender
offices within the counties situate within the jurisdiction of each council
with respect to:
(i) the
number of assigned appeals pending, and the length of time the appeals have
been pending;
(ii)
the number of attorneys available to perfect assigned appeals and whether such
attorneys are available on a full-time basis;
(iii) the number of appeals perfected
annually;
(iv)
availability of alternative representation in those cases involving conflict of
interests;
(v) the
length of time necessary to obtain transcripts of stenographic minutes
necessary to perfect assigned appeals; and
(vi) any matter of concern raised by
the presiding justice, chairperson or any member of the council relating to
indigent criminal appeals;
(2) the evaluation of the operation of
the assigned counsel plans in each county utilizing such a plan for the
assignment of appeals with respect to:
(i) the number of attorneys in each
county willing to accept assignments of appeals;
(ii) individual caseloads and
the length of time such cases have been pending;
(iii) the length of time
necessary to obtain transcripts of the stenographic minutes necessary for the
perfection of appeals; and
(iv) any matter of concern raised by
the presiding justice, chairperson or member of the council relating to
indigent criminal appeals;
(3) the submission to the presiding
justice of recommendations for the elimination of appeal backlogs in the public
defender offices or legal aid societies and the achievement of the time and
calendaring goals established by these rules.
(d) Each council shall submit
to the presiding justice no later than 30 days after the date of the meeting of
the council, a report of the council's deliberations and
recommendations.
(e)
Public defender and legal aid offices assigned to perfect criminal appeals and
assigned council administrators, at least two weeks before each meeting of the
council, shall file a report with the council chairperson showing the status of
all assigned appeals in their counties and measures they have taken with
respect to delinquent appeals.
(f) The presiding justice shall take
such steps as are deemed appropriate to implement the recommendations of the
councils in conjunction with this court, the Chief Administrator of the Courts,
the Chief Administrative Judge of a judicial district or local authorities
responsible for funding the public defender offices, legal aid offices or the
assigned counsel plan.
