Bill 482

                    Current Status

Bill Number:                    482
Ratification Number:            288
Act Number:                     279
Type of Legislation:            General Bill GB
Introducing Body:               Senate
Introduced Date:                19970305
Primary Sponsor:                Ryberg 
All Sponsors:                   Ryberg 
Drafted Document Number:        res1317.wgr
Date Bill Passed both Bodies:   19980317
Date of Last Amendment:         19980312
Governor's Action:              U Became law without signature of
                                Governor
Date of Governor's Action:      19980408
Subject:                        Public defenders not required to
                                reside in county in which they serve,
                                Attorneys

Body    Date      Action Description                       Com     Leg Involved
______  ________  _______________________________________  _______ ____________

------  19980423  Act No. A279
------  19980408  Unsigned, became law without
                  signature of Governor
------  19980401  Ratified R288
Senate  19980317  Concurred in House amendment,
                  enrolled for ratification
House   19980313  Read third time, returned to Senate
                  with amendment
House   19980312  Read second time, unanimous
                  consent for third reading on
                  Friday, 19980313
House   19980312  Amended
House   19980311  Committee report: Favorable with         25 HJ
                  amendment
House   19970416  Introduced, read first time,             25 HJ
                  referred to Committee
Senate  19970415  Read third time, sent to House
Senate  19970410  Read second time
Senate  19970409  Committee report: Favorable              11 SJ
Senate  19970305  Introduced, read first time,             11 SJ
                  referred to Committee

(A279, R288, S482)

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 17-3-60, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO PUBLIC DEFENDERS, SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT THE PUBLIC DEFENDER OR ASSISTANT PUBLIC DEFENDERS MAY RESIDE OUTSIDE OF THE COUNTY OR THE DEFENDER CORPORATION AREA IN WHICH THEY SERVE.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:

Residence requirements revised

SECTION 1. Section 17-3-60 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:

Section 17-3-60. If a majority of the attorneys of any county admitted to practice before the Supreme Court of this State, whose principal office is located in the county, elect to establish a public defender system in such county they shall do so in accordance with the following:

(a) The bar of the county shall create an eleemosynary corporation to be known as the Defender Corporation of County.

(b) The board of directors shall be composed of at least three but not more than ten attorneys of the county, to be elected or appointed by the bar of the county and the board shall exercise all the ordinary and usual functions including the selection and dismissal of personnel.

(c) The county shall have one or more public defenders and as many assistant defenders as deemed necessary by the directors, not to exceed the number of assistant solicitors of the circuit in which the county is located.

(d) The public defender and assistant public defenders shall be licensed to practice law in this State. The public defender or the assistant public defenders may reside outside of the county in which they serve.

(e) The public defender and assistant public defenders shall give priority to their duties under the provisions of this chapter, and may engage in the private practice of law only if permitted to do so by the board herein named and only to the extent that it will not interfere with, or prevent performance of, their duties as public defenders or assistant defenders; provided, public defenders and assistant public defenders shall not represent persons charged with a criminal offense under the laws of this State in their private practice of law.

(f) Each public defender shall receive as compensation an amount not to exceed that received by the solicitor of the judicial circuit in which he is located. Provided, however, that in counties where the public defender is full time and without private practice and the circuit solicitor serving that county engages in private practice, the compensation of the public defender shall not exceed the salary provided by law for a full-time circuit solicitor. Assistant public defenders shall receive as compensation amounts not to exceed the compensation received by assistant solicitors serving the county in which the assistant defender is located. No additional state funds shall be used to provide for such compensation of public defenders and assistant public defenders above the appropriations authorized by Sections 17-3-70 and 17-3-80.

(g) The board may employ such other part-time or full-time personnel as practicable and necessary for the efficient discharge of duties under this chapter.

(h) The corporation established hereunder is authorized to receive funds from any legitimate source in furtherance of the aims of this chapter.

(i) Nothing herein contained is designed to prevent the combined bars of two or more adjoining counties from jointly creating a defender corporation to be known as the Defender Corporation of and counties. For the purposes of this subsection the public defender or the assistant public defenders may reside outside of the defender corporation area.

Time effective

SECTION 2. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.

Became law without the signature of the Governor -- 04/08/98.