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Galveston County's indigent-defense plan under the Texas Fair Defense Act, adopted jointly by the District Court and County Court at Law Judges: prompt magistration, counsel-request procedure, financial standards for indigency, appointment timing, Master List rotation discipline, mental-health appointment priority, appointed-counsel duties, and the fee/expense voucher regime. Effective January 1, 2003; amended twelve times through September 26, 2024 (current edition, filed with the District Clerk Sept. 26, 2024). The operative requirements are quoted verbatim below from the filed instrument (23-page scan, vision-transcribed).
Texas > Galveston County > County Courts at Law and District Courts
Adoption (p.3, verbatim): "Be it remembered that on this date the County Court at Law Judges and District Court Judges for Galveston County, Texas hereby adopt these rules for the timely and fair appointment of counsel for indigent accused persons in Galveston County, Texas. This document is the Galveston County Plan in conformance with the requirements of the Texas Fair Defense Act." MAGISTRATION. "Texas Code Crim. Procedure Art 14.06 requires that the arresting officer, or the person having custody of the arrestee, shall take the arrestee before a magistrate without unnecessary delay, but not later than 48 hours after the person is arrested." … "Persons in custody brought before a magistrate shall be informed by the magistrate of the right to request counsel under C.C.P Article 15.17 Subsection (e). A record will be made of these proceedings and shall be preserved as required by C.C.P Article 15.17 Subsection (f)." … "Requests for counsel made by defendants arrested on out-of-county warrants must be transmitted to the appointing authority of the county issuing the warrant within 24 hours of the request being made as required by C.C.P Article 15.18(a-1)." INDIGENCY STANDARDS (Sec. III, standards dated 03/09/2022). A defendant is indigent if "the defendant's net household income does not exceed 125% of the Poverty Guidelines" (HHS) and non-exempt assets "(i) does not exceed $2,500.00; (ii) does not exceed $5,000.00 in the case of a defendant whose household includes a person who is age 60 or over, disabled, or institutionalized; or (iii) does not exceed double the estimated cost of obtaining competent private legal representation on the offense(s) with which the defendant is charged." Presumptive indigency on eligibility for "food stamps, Medicaid, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, Supplemental Security Income, or public housing." Partial indigency: income "greater than 125% but does not exceed 175%" of the Guidelines — "eligible for appointment of counsel only upon payment to the county of an appointment fee of $100 if charged with one or more misdemeanors or $200 if charged with one or more felonies." Not considered: "A defendant's posting of bail or ability to post bail may not be considered in determining whether the defendant is indigent." … "A defendant determined to be indigent is presumed to remain indigent for the remainder of the case unless a material change in the defendant's financial circumstances occurs." The Magistrate "is not authorized to appoint counsel"; the Indigent Defense Coordinator "shall deliver the received information to the assigned misdemeanor or felony Judge no later than the next working day." GOVERNANCE. "The Criminal Courts Board is composed of the Judges of the 10th, 56th, 122nd, 212th, 306th, and 405th District Courts and the Judges of County Courts at Law Numbers 1, 2, and 3." … "any amendment to the Galveston County Plan must be approved by 2/3 or more of the Judges who are members of the Criminal Courts Board." A Board-approved Indigent Defense Services Coordinator administers the lists, rotation, and complaints. APPOINTMENT TIMING (Sec. XI, "Prompt Appointment of Counsel 10/18/2021"). In custody: the District or County Court at Law Judge (or MMHPDO where applicable) appoints "not later than the end of the first working day after the Court receives the request for appointed counsel"; if "on the 11th day after the arrest, the defendant is still in the custody of Galveston County," the jail-docket duty Judge appoints. "Only a District Court Judge or County Court at Law Judge shall appoint counsel." Out-of-county jail on a Galveston warrant: appointment "within one working day after the request is received." Released on bond: appointment "at the eligible defendant's first court appearance or when adversarial judicial proceedings are initiated, whichever comes first" (request forms: TIDC, the county indigent-defense page {Form GC-15}, or the Clerks; Office of District Court Administration, 600 59th Street, Galveston, Texas 77551). ROTATION DISCIPLINE. District and County Courts at Law appoint "from the first five names on the Master List of those qualified to represent defendants at the level of offense involved. An attorney may not be bypassed for appointment more than two times on the Master List unless the … Judge finds, in writing, that a conflict of interest exists or that good cause exists for bypassing the attorney." Limited-term (bail-review / jail-docket) assignments run one week (district: one attorney from the 3rd-Degree-and-greater list; CCL: two attorneys), and "The same attorney may not participate as a jail docket attorney … more than once during a three (3) month period." CAPITAL AND MENTAL-HEALTH LANES. "Except in those cases where a legal conflict exists, the Court shall appoint the Regional Public Defender for Capital Cases for all death-eligible capital cases" (conflict fallback: the 11th Administrative Judicial Region capital lists). "Priority appointment will be given to the Felony Mental Health Attorney Wheel in all felony cases where there is reasonable cause to believe that the defendant has a mental illness or is a person with an intellectual disability, pursuant to Tex. Code Crim. Proc. art. 26.04(f)"; in Class A/B misdemeanor cases the Misdemeanor Mental Health Public Defender's Office (MMHPDO) has priority, subject to its capacity, conflicts policy, and written plan. ATTORNEY QUALIFICATIONS (Sec. VII, dated 08/16/2022). Basics include Galveston County residence or office, 24-hour fax and e-mail, and "a minimum of ten (10) hours of certified C.L.E. credits annually in criminal law"; annual TIDC practice-time report due October 15 — "The Board may remove from the list of approved attorneys, without further notice, any attorney who fails to submit the form by October 15 of each year as required herein." Graduated-list experience tiers run from capital (board certification / felony-jury-trial counts) through misdemeanor and appellate lists; the annual list update is posted at the District Clerk's and County Clerk's offices "no later than December 31st of each year." DUTIES OF APPOINTED COUNSEL (Sec. XIII). "Court appointed attorneys shall make every reasonable effort to contact the indigent defendant not later than the end of the first working day after notification of appointment is received and to interview the defendant as soon as practicable. Except for good cause shown to the Judge presiding over the case, the interview must be within fifteen (15) days of the date of the appointment." … "a court appointed attorney shall represent a defendant until the case is resolved, including all appeals; or, until the Court, after entering written finding of good cause, relieves the attorney." FEES AND EXPENSES (Secs. XIV–XVI; Exhibit #1 fee guidelines approved 08/22/2024). Vouchers use the GALVESTON COUNTY ATTORNEY FEE VOUCHER form; "Time shall be detailed in increments of tenths (six-minute increments)" and claims are due within ten days of the disposition classes stated in Sec. XVI (appeals: no "later than ten (10) days after the appellate court issues the mandate"). "Vouchers for indigent attorney fees not timely submitted will be considered waived, the services performed Pro Bono, and the request for attorney's fees denied." Fee disapprovals require written findings and may be appealed "with the Presiding Judge of the 11th Administrative Region." Investigator/expert claims are paid "only to the Provider of the services." Signed September 26, 2024 by the nine Criminal Courts Board judges (10th/56th/122nd/212th/306th/405th District; CCL 1–3). Full instrument: https://topics.txcourts.gov/LocalRulesPublic/PreviewAttachment/2089 — vision transcript: docs/handoff/tx/galveston/transcripts/tfda-2089-transcript.md.
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