(a) There is established a Public Defender Services Commission which shall consist of seven members appointed as follows:

(1) The Chief Justice shall appoint two judges of the Superior Court, or a judge of the Superior Court and any one of the following: A retired judge of the Superior Court, a former judge of the Superior Court, a retired judge of the Circuit Court, or a retired judge of the Court of Common Pleas;

(2) The speaker of the House, the president pro tempore of the Senate, the minority leader of the House and the minority leader of the Senate shall each appoint one member; and

(3) The Governor shall appoint a chairman.

(b) The chairman shall serve for a three-year term and all appointments of members to replace those whose terms expire shall be for terms of three years.

(c) Not more than three of the members, other than the chairman, may be members of the same political party. Of the four nonjudicial members, other than the chairman, at least two shall not be members of the bar of any state.

(d) If any vacancy occurs on the commission, the appointing authority having the power to make the initial appointment under the provisions of this chapter shall appoint a person for the unexpired term in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.

(e) Members shall serve without compensation but shall be reimbursed for actual expenses incurred while engaged in the duties of the commission. Members of the commission shall not be employed or nominated to serve as public defenders or in any other position created under this chapter.

(f) The commission may adopt such rules as it deems necessary for the conduct of its internal affairs.

(g) The commission shall be responsible for carrying out the purposes of this chapter and, to carry out those purposes, the commission shall adopt rules relating to the operations of a Division of Public Defender Services and shall provide any facilities, other than those provided in the courts by the Judicial Department, necessary for the carrying out of those services. Such rules shall include, but need not be limited to, Income and Eligibility Guidelines for the representation of indigent individuals.

(h) Public defender services shall consist of those duties carried out by Superior Court and Court of Common Pleas public defenders prior to July 1, 1978, those duties carried out by the Commission on Child Protection and the Chief Child Protection Attorney prior to July 1, 2011, and those responsibilities provided for by this chapter. Public defender services shall be executed by a Chief Public Defender, a deputy chief public defender, public defenders, assistant public defenders, deputy assistant public defenders, investigators and other personnel which the commission deems necessary.

(i) The Public Defender Services Commission shall constitute a successor to the Commission on Child Protection. All functions, powers and duties of the Commission on Child Protection are transferred to the Public Defender Services Commission in accordance with sections 4-38d, 4-38e and 4-39.

(j) The Judicial Department shall provide adequate facilities for public defenders, assistant public defenders and deputy assistant public defenders in the various courts.

(k) The commission shall establish a compensation plan comparable to that established for the Division of Criminal Justice in chapter 886, as it may be amended, and shall make rules relating to employees serving under this chapter, including rules relating to sick leave and vacation time.

(l) The commission shall be an autonomous body within the Judicial Department for fiscal and budgetary purposes only.

(P.A. 74-317, S. 1, 14; P.A. 76-436, S. 574, 681; P.A. 82-248, S. 144; P.A. 11-51, S. 1.)

History: P.A. 76-436 changed membership of commission to add extra superior court judge and to make appointment of former judge of circuit court or common pleas court optional rather than mandatory, specifying that such former judge is to be retired, so as to reflect transfer of all trial jurisdiction to superior court in Subsec. (a) and similarly amended Subsec. (d) to reflect transfer of jurisdiction and to include deputy assistant public defenders, effective July 1, 1978; P.A. 82-248 rephrased and reorganized the section, deleted provisions concerning the terms of office of the initial appointees, and added Subsec. (j) concerning the autonomous nature of the commission which was formerly part of Sec. 51-291; P.A. 11-51 amended Subsec. (g) to provide that rules include Income and Eligibility Guidelines, redesignated existing provisions of Subsec. (g) re public defender services as Subsec. (h) and amended same to provide that services consist of duties carried out by Commission on Child Protection and Chief Child Protection Attorney prior to July 1, 2011, added new Subsec. (i) re commission as successor to, and transfer of functions, powers and duties of, Commission on Child Protection, redesignated existing Subsecs. (h), (i) and (j) as Subsecs. (j), (k) and (l), and made technical changes, effective July 1, 2011.

Public Defender Services Commission, not trial court, has authority to authorize public expenditures for expert or investigative services for indigent, self-represented defendants as an autonomous fiscal body within the Judicial Branch. 312 C. 222.