The public defender shall have the following powers and duties:

(1) Within his or her geographic jurisdiction, the public defender shall provide indigent defense services as defined in Section 15-12-1 to indigent defendants.
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Terms Used In Alabama Code 15-12-42

  • Appellate: About appeals; an appellate court has the power to review the judgement of another lower court or tribunal.
  • Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
  • following: means next after. See Alabama Code 1-1-1
  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
  • Public defender: Represent defendants who can't afford an attorney in criminal matters.
  • state: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Alabama Code 1-1-1
(2) The public defender, at the request and with the consent of a municipal governing body and the office, shall represent indigent defendants in a municipal court within his or her geographic jurisdiction. The municipality shall reimburse the office of the public defender for the costs associated with the services rendered.
(3) The public defender, with consent of the director, may represent an indigent defendant in a state appellate court.
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