Judicial district indigent defender fund

A. There is hereby created within each judicial district an indigent defender fund which shall be administered by the district public defender on behalf of the office of the district public defender for that judicial district and composed of funds provided for by this Section and such funds as may be appropriated or otherwise made available to it. B. (1)(a) Every court of original criminal jurisdiction, except in the town of Jonesville, in the city of Plaquemine, and in mayors' courts in municipalities having a population of less than nine thousand, shall remit the following special costs to the district indigent defender fund for the following violations, under state statute as well as under parish or municipal ordinance, except a parking violation. Except as provided in Subparagraph (b) of this Paragraph, the sum of forty-five dollars shall be assessed in cases in which a defendant is convicted after a trial, a plea of guilty or nolo contendere, or after forfeiting bond and shall be in addition to all other fines, costs, or forfeitures imposed. (b) In the parish of Orleans, in addition to all other fines, costs, or forfeitures imposed, the sum of forty-five dollars may be assessed in cases in which a defendant is convicted after a trial, a plea of guilty or nolo contendere, or after forfeiting bond. (2)(a) Such amounts shall be remitted by the respective recipients thereof to the judicial district indigent defender fund monthly by the tenth day of the succeeding month. (b) Such amounts remitted in the parish of Orleans shall include all of the following data for each case in which the costs required for in this Subsection are assessed: (1) Name and case number of each defendant. (2) Date of order assessing such costs. (3) Date by which the defendant is ordered to pay such costs. (4) Date of collection of such costs. (5) Actual amount collected. (c) The office for the district public defender for the parish of Orleans shall notify the office of the inspector general, city of New Orleans, in writing, if such amounts and data required in Subparagraphs (a) and (b) of this Paragraph have not been remitted by the fifteenth day of the month. C. Except as otherwise provided by the Louisiana Public Defender Act, the funds provided for in this Section, and any other self-generated revenue and all interest or other income earned from the investment of such funds and self-generated revenue shall be retained in the district and shall be used and administered by the district public defender. D. Any unexpended and unencumbered monies in the judicial district indigent defender fund at the close of each fiscal year shall remain in the judicial district indigent defender fund. Monies in the fund shall be administered and used solely and exclusively for purposes of delivering indigent defender services in that judicial district. E. (1) No court shall order the payment of any funds administered by the office or district public defender for expert witnesses, or for any other reason unless the person makes an application in accordance with R.S. 15:175(A). If the district public defender or state public defender declines the application for expert witness funding, the matter may be fixed for a contradictory hearing that is closed to the public and without the presence of the prosecuting authority. All recordings and transcripts of the contradictory hearing shall be sealed. To require the payment of any expert witness fee, the applicant shall demonstrate by a preponderance of the evidence at the hearing and the court shall make specific findings as follows: (a) The applicant is actually indigent. (b) Private counsel of the applicant does not have funds that may be used for expert witnesses. (c) The source of funding for private counsel is not available for expert witnesses. (d) The applicant has demonstrated with a reasonable degree of specificity what type of expert is needed and the purpose of the expert. (e) There is a reasonable probability that denial of the expert's assistance would result in a fundamentally unfair trial for the applicant. (2) The findings and ruling of the court are subject to immediate interlocutory review by the appellate court of competent jurisdiction. F. Repealed by Acts 2024, 2nd Ex. Sess., No. 22, §3, eff. March 20, 2024.