Are all “appointed attorneys” employees of the Public Defenders Office?
No. If you are accused of a crime and cannot afford to hire your own attorney, the court will usually appoint the Public Defender’s Office to represent you. However, in some situations, a “conflict of interest” may arise, which would make it impossible for our office to effectively work on your behalf. A good example of this might be where our office is already representing another defendant accused in the same case. In that event the court will appoint an attorney from the office of the Alternate Public Defender, or an attorney in private criminal defense practice. Neither the attorneys employed by the Alternate Public Defender, nor the private attorneys who accept such appointments are employees of the Public Defender, even though they have been appointed by the court.
