South Carolina Commission on Indigent Defense

Enabling Legislation:
The Commission and the Office of Indigent Defense were established by Act 164 of 1993, effective July 1, 1993. The Office operates pursuant to §17-3-310, et seq. of the South Carolina Code of Laws, 1976, as amended. Effective July 1, 2005, the Office of Appellate Defense became a division within the agency.

Mission Statement:
The Commission on Indigent Defense, through the Office of Indigent Defense and its divisions, and in cooperation and consultation with other state agencies, professional associations and other groups interested in the administration of criminal justice and the improvement and expansion of defender services, establishes and monitors programs and services for the delivery of legal representation to indigent defendants charged with criminal offenses in the courts of the state. The agency also oversees the payment to court appointed attorneys for certain legal services performed on behalf of indigent clients in the Family Courts of the state.

The Division of Appellate Defense within the agency handles appeals on behalf of indigent clients and consists of a staff of eight attorneys.

The Office of Indigent Defense establishes criteria to be used in the determination of indigency and qualifications for services for indigent legal representation, establishes guidelines for court appointed attorneys in representing indigent clients, and administers appropriate distribution of funding for indigent defense. Additionally, the office establishes and supervises training programs for public defenders and staff across the State, and oversees the implementation of a central reporting system for the accurate compilation of statistical data in the delivery of indigent defense services.

Governing Entity:
The Commission on Indigent Defense is comprised of fifteen (15 members, six (6) of which are appointed by the Governor upon the recommendation of the South Carolina Public Defender Association from the state's six (6) Congressional districts, and four (4) of which are appointed by the Governor upon recommendation of the South Carolina Bar, the South Carolina Association of Criminal Defense Attorneys, the South Carolina Public Defenders Association, and the South Carolina Trial Lawyers Association. Additionally, the Commission is comprised of two (2) members appointed by the Chief Justice of the South Carolina Supreme Court, a retired circuit court judge, and a retired judge from either the state's Family Court system or from the South Carolina Court of Appeals; and two (2) members appointed by the chairs of the South Carolina Senate and House of Prepresentatives Judiciary Committees, from the membership of the respective committees. The Chairman is appointed at large by the Governor from among the states public defenders. The Commisison hires the Executive Director.