HomeMy WebLinkAboutResolutions - 2026.03.11 - 42790
AGENDA ITEM: Application for FY2027 Michigan Indigent Defense Commission ("MIDC") Grant
DEPARTMENT: Indigent Defense
MEETING: Board of Commissioners
DATE: Wednesday, March 11, 2026 6:00 PM - Click to View Agenda
ITEM SUMMARY SHEET
COMMITTEE REPORT TO BOARD
Resolution #2026-6211
Motion to approve the submission of the FY2027 Michigan Indigent Defense Commission (MIDC)
Grant Application and authorize the Indigent Defense Services Office to engage in any necessary
negotiation with the MIDC and prepare any necessary revision of the Draft Cost Analysis; further,
that when the final version of the FY2027 MIDC Compliance Plan and Cost Analysis is officially
approved by the MIDC this item will be brought back before the Board of Commissioners for grant
acceptance.
ITEM CATEGORY SPONSORED BY
Grant Gwen Markham
INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND
This is the annual grant application to the Michigan Indigent Defense Commission (MIDC) to fund
the provision of indigent criminal defense services in Oakland County.
The Michigan Indigent Defense Commission Act (“MIDC Act”), MCL 780.981, et. seq., gives the
Michigan Indigent Defense Commission (“MIDC”) the authority to propose minimum standards for
the provision of indigent criminal defense services. A proposed standard takes effect after it is
adopted by the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (“LARA”). The MIDC Act requires
every indigent criminal defense system in Michigan to comply with every standard that has been
adopted by LARA. Oakland County is the indigent criminal defense system (“System”) for the 6th
Circuit Court and the four divisions of the 52nd District Court. Systems are legally required to submit
a Compliance Plan and Cost Analysis annually to the MIDC, which explains the methods by which
the System will comply with the approved standards in the next fiscal year, and lists the amount of
money the System requires to comply with the approved standards. The MIDC reviews the
Compliance Plans and Cost Analysis for accuracy and thereafter votes to approve or disapprove the
Compliance Plan and Cost Analysis.
The MIDC is obligated to issue a grant to each System in the amount indicated in an approved Cost
Analysis. The final grant award is determined by deducting the statutorily required “local share” from
the total Cost Analysis amount, and said local share is calculated at $1,867,161.92 for FY2027. The
current MIDC grant funds several County positions and the County will seek to include those
positions in its Compliance Plan and Cost Analysis for FY2027, as well as one additional positions
in the Public Defender’s Office. The County intends to seek approximately $20 million in grant
funding from the MIDC, as more fully outlined in the Draft Cost Analysis. The Draft Cost Analysis is
included as an attachment to this item, and the draft is subject to further negotiations between the
MIDC and the County and may be revised during the course of those negotiations.
FISCAL IMPACT: No Budget Amendment Needed
Committee members can contact Barbara Winter, Policy and Fiscal Analysis Supervisor at
248.821.3065 or winterb@oakgov.com or the department contact persons listed for additional
information.
CONTACT
Pete Menna, Chief Attorney - Indigent Defense
ITEM REVIEW TRACKING
Aaron Snover, Board of Commissioners Created/Initiated - 3/11/2026
AGENDA DEADLINE: 02/25/2026 4:30 PM
ATTACHMENTS
1. GRANT SIGN OFF - MDIC FY27 Application
2. MIDC Cost Analysis - FY2027 - BOC Draft
3. FY27 Grant Application Questions
4. PowerPoint FY27 MIDC Grant
COMMITTEE TRACKING
2026-03-04 Finance - Recommend to Board
2026-03-11 Full Board - Adopt
Motioned by: Commissioner Christine Long
Seconded by: Commissioner Linnie Taylor
Yes: Charles Cavell, Ann Erickson Gault, Marcia Gershenson, Robert Hoffman, Karen Joliat,
Christine Long, Penny Luebs, Gwen Markham, Kristen Nelson, Angela Powell, Robert Smiley,
Yolanda Smith Charles, Michael Spisz, Linnie Taylor, Philip Weipert, David Woodward (16)
No: None (0)
Abstain: None (0)
Absent: Michael Gingell, Brendan Johnson, William Miller III (3)
Passed
SIGN-OFF – Indigent Defense Services
GRANT NAME: FY2027 Michigan Indigent Defense Commission Grant APP00285
FUNDING AGENCY: Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) and the
Michigan Indigent Defense Commission (MIDC)
DEPARTMENT CONTACT: Pete Menna 248-858-1619
STATUS: Application (Greater than $50,000)
DATE: 02/25/2026
Please be advised that the captioned grant materials have completed the internal grant review. The returned
comments are below.
The Board of Commissioners’ liaison committee resolution and grant application package (which should include
this sign-off and the grant application with related documentation) should be downloaded into Civic Clerk to be
placed on the next agenda(s) of the appropriate Board of Commissioners’ committee(s) for grant acceptance by
Board resolution.
DEPARTMENT REVIEW
Indigent Defense System Cost Analysis
Grant Year October 1, 2026 - September 30, 2027
Funding Unit Name(s)Oakland County DATE SUBMITTED:
Personnel Position Calculation hours and rate Total State Grant Local Share
Other Funding
Sources Total Step Hours Hourly Rate Bi-Weekly UAW Bonus
Indigent Defense (P00012216)Chief Attorney Indigent Defense (APP/336)See Columns I - L 210,953.35 84 2080 101.4199 8113.59
Indigent Defense (P00016908)Principal Attorney - Standard 6/7 Compliance (UNI/131)See Columns I - L 165,288.56 84 2080 79.4657 6357.25
Indigent Defense (P00012217) Indigent Defense Administrative Supervisor (UNI/123)See Columns I - L 109,495.63 72 2080 52.6421 4211.37
Indigent Defense (P00012218) Financial Services Tech III (UNI/115)See Columns I - M 77,396.88 84 2080 36.9697 2957.57 500
Indigent Defense (P00012219) Indigent Defense Specialists (52-1) (UNI/112)See Columns I - M 66,926.26 84 2080 31.9357 2554.86 500
Indigent Defense (P00012220) Indigent Defense Specialists (52-2) (UNI/112)See Columns I - M 66,926.26 84 2080 31.9357 2554.86 500
Indigent Defense (P00015388)Indigent Defense Specialists (52-3) (UNI/112)See Columns I - M 66,926.26 84 2080 31.9357 2554.86 500
Indigent Defense (P00012222) Indigent Defense Specialists (52-4) (UNI/112)See Columns I - M 66,926.26 84 2080 31.9357 2554.86 500
Indigent Defense (P00012221) Indigent Defense Specialists (6th Circuit) (UNI/112)See Columns I - M 66,926.26 84 2080 31.9357 2554.86 500
Indigent Defense (P00015389)Indigent Defense Specialists (6th Circuit) (UNI/112)See Columns I - M 66,926.26 84 2080 31.9357 2554.86 500
Pre-Trial Services (P00012223) Pretrial and Justice Specialist II (UNI/119)See Columns I - M 71,452.99 1 2080 33.5399 2683.19 1690
Pre-Trial Services (P00012224)Pretrial and Justice Specialist II (UNI/119)See Columns I - M 88,385.02 60 2080 41.6803 3334.42 1690
Sheriff (P00012225) Deputy I - Full Time Saturday - Wednesday See Columns I - L 81,793.81 72 2080 39.3239 3145.92
Sheriff Deputy I - Thurs/Fri coverage (16 Hours/week)See Columns I - L 32,717.52 72 832 39.3239
Sheriff Deputy I - Vacation Replacement
Vacation replacement based on full-time Corrections
Deputy I accrual of 220 hours/year, calculated at
regular time of $38.2670/hr 8,651.27 72 220 39.3239
Sheriff Deputy I - Holiday and Misc. Overtime
Per contract, if Deputies work a holiday they are
entitled to 8 hours regular pay plus 8 hours at 1.5x.
There also may be emergency situations where OT
coverage may be necessary.
72 holiday hours plus 40 misc. hours at $57.4005/hr 6,606.42 72 112 58.9859
Indigent Defense (P00015865)Public Defender (APP/336)See Columns I - L 210,953.35 84 2080 101.4199 8113.59
Indigent Defense (P00015866)Deputy Chief Public Defender (APP/333)See Columns I - L 200,908.51 84 2080 96.5906 7727.25
Indigent Defense (P00017578)Chief Public Defender (Circuit Court Supervisor) (APP/333)See Columns I - L 182,229.94 84 2080 87.6105 7008.84
Indigent Defense (P00017579)Chief Public Defender (District Court Supervisor) (APP/333)See Columns I - L 142,615.75 12 2080 68.5653 5485.22
Indigent Defense (P00015867)Principal Attorney - Public Defender (UNI/131)See Columns I - L 165,288.56 84 2080 79.4657 6357.25
Indigent Defense (P00016907)Principal Attorney - Public Defender (UNI/131)See Columns I - L 147,322.56 48 2080 70.8282 5666.25
Indigent Defense (P00015868)Principal Attorney - Public Defender (UNI/131)See Columns I - L 165,288.56 84 2080 79.4657 6357.25
Indigent Defense (P00016906)Principal Attorney - Public Defender (UNI/131) (Underfilled)See Columns I - L 110,738.63 36 2080 53.2397 4259.18
Indigent Defense (P00015869)Assistant Public Defender - Senior (UNI/126)See Columns I - L 129,508.05 84 2080 62.2635 4981.08
Indigent Defense (P00016910)Assistant Public Defender - Senior (UNI/126)See Columns I - L 120,123.99 60 2080 57.7519 4620.15
Indigent Defense (P00015870)Assistant Public Defender - Senior (UNI/126)See Columns I - L 129,508.05 84 2080 62.2635 4981.08
Indigent Defense (P00016909)Assistant Public Defender - Senior (UNI/126)See Columns I - L 106,046.10 24 2080 50.9837 4078.70
Indigent Defense (P00016119)Assistant Public Defender - Senior (UNI/126)See Columns I - L 129,508.05 84 2080 62.2635 4981.08
Indigent Defense (P00016911)Assistant Public Defender (UNI/122)See Columns I - L 106,546.93 84 2080 51.2245 4097.96
Indigent Defense (P00015871)Assistant Public Defender (UNI/122)See Columns I - L 106,546.93 84 2080 51.2245 4097.96
Indigent Defense (P00017580)Assistant Public Defender (UNI/122)See Columns I - L 98,825.58 60 2080 47.5123 3800.98
Indigent Defense (P00017581)Assistant Public Defender (UNI/122)See Columns I - L 106,546.93 84 2080 51.2245 4097.96
Indigent Defense (P00015872)Public Defender Paralegal (UNI/116)See Columns I - L 79,506.98 84 2080 38.2245 3057.96
Indigent Defense (P00016941)Public Defender Paralegal (UNI/116)See Columns I - L 79,506.98 84 2080 38.2245 3057.96
Indigent Defense (P00017582)Public Defender Paralegal (UNI/116)See Columns I - L 79,506.98 84 2080 38.2245 3057.96
Indigent Defense (P00016944)Public Defender Legal Secretary - Senior (UNI/114)See Columns I - L 72,114.97 84 2080 34.6707 2773.65
Indigent Defense (P00017583)Public Defender Legal Secretary - Senior (UNI/114)See Columns I - L 66,889.58 60 2080 32.1585 2572.68
Indigent Defense (P00016120)Social Worker (UNI/121)See Columns I - L 101,473.69 84 2080 48.7854 3902.83
Indigent Defense (P00016943)Social Worker (UNI/121)See Columns I - L 101,473.69 84 2080 48.7854 3902.83
Indigent Defense (P00015887)Public Defender Investigator (UNI/119)See Columns I - L 92,038.48 84 2080 44.2493 3539.94
Indigent Defense (P00016942)Public Defender Investigator (UNI/119)See Columns I - L 92,038.48 84 2080 44.2493 3539.94
Indigent Defense (P00017308)Law Clerk Intern See Columns I - L 11,263.10 60 500 22.5262
Indigent Defense (P00017309)Law Clerk Intern See Columns I - L 11,263.10 60 500 22.5262
Indigent Defense - New Position User Support Specialist I See Columns I - L 80,456.71 72 2080 38.6811 3094.49
Category Summary Total 4,480,338.24 4,480,338.24 4,480,338.24
Fringe Benefits Percentage (33.86% FT) (31.2% OT)Fixed Direct Contract Charge Variable Amount*State Grant Local Share
Other Funding
Sources Total
Chief Attorney IDSO 0.3316 16,250.00 $69,952.13
Principal Attorney - Standard 6/7 Compliance 0.3316 16,250.00 $54,809.69
IDSO Administrative Supervisor 0.3316 16,250.00 $36,308.75
IDSO Financial Services Tech III 0.3316 16,250.00 $25,664.80
Indigent Defense Specialist - 52-1 0.3316 16,250.00 $22,192.75
Indigent Defense Specialist - 52-2 0.3316 16,250.00 $22,192.75
Indigent Defense Specialist - 52-3 0.3316 16,250.00 $22,192.75
Indigent Defense Specialist - 52-4 0.3316 16,250.00 $22,192.75
Indigent Defense Specialist - 6th Circuit 0.3316 16,250.00 $22,192.75
Indigent Defense Specialist - 6th Circuit 0.3316 16,250.00 $22,192.75
Salary rates are shown at the projected general salary increase of 3.75%in FY2027 based on the UAW collective bargaining agreement and projected general salary increase for non-UAW employees.Because of the accelerated due date of this compliance plan,we can only project the anticipated salary increase for non-UAW employees,and the actual increase
may be higher or lower than projected.Pursuant to the UAW CBA,any UAW employee who has been on the top step of their salary grade for at least a year is entitled to an annual $500 bonus payment,which is applicable to 7 employees listed above.Also pursuant to the UAW CBA,the two Pretrial &Justice Specialist positions are entitled to a shift
premium/weekend premium due to their work hours,which has a maximum total of $3,380/year for both positions if all potential premium hours were worked.
The MIDC funded Corrections Deputies are part of a union.The OCSO must follow the union contract canvassing rules to cover the vacations of the MIDC funded deputy positions outside of the replacement deputies'normal work hours.Therefore,the vacation backfill costs cannot be considered supplanting.
The Indigent Defense Appointment Coordinator was previously considered to be a supplanted position by the MIDC.The County has not included this position in the FY2027 cost analysis.
The only additional employee position added to this plan,in comparison to the FY26 plan,is a support staff position in the Public Defender's Office
Egrams total is $x.xx less than spreadsheet total due to Egrams rounding to three decimal places for salaries,vs.four on spreadsheet.
Pretrial and Justice Specialist II 0.3316 16,250.00 $23,693.81
Pretrial and Justice Specialist II 0.3316 16,250.00 $29,308.47
Deputy I - (OCJ) - Full Time Sat - Wed 0.3316 16,250.00 $27,122.83
Deputy I - (OCJ) - Thurs/Fri coverage 0.3316 16,250.00 $10,849.13
Deputy I - Vacation Replacement 0.3316 16,250.00 $2,868.76
Deputy I - Holiday and Misc. Overtime 0.33 N/A $2,180.12
Public Defender 0.3316 16,250.00 $69,952.13
Deputy Chief PD 0.3316 16,250.00 $66,621.26
Chief PD (Circuit Court Supervisor)0.3316 16,250.00 $60,427.45
Chief PD (District Court Supervisor)0.3316 16,250.00 $47,291.38
Principal Attorney PD 0.3316 16,250.00 $54,809.69
Principal Attorney PD 0.3316 16,250.00 $48,852.16
Principal Attorney PD 0.3316 16,250.00 $54,809.69
Senior Assistant PD (underfill of Principal)0.3316 16,250.00 $36,720.93
Senior Assistant PD 0.3316 16,250.00 $42,944.87
Senior Assistant PD 0.3316 16,250.00 $39,833.12
Senior Assistant PD 0.3316 16,250.00 $42,944.87
Senior Assistant PD 0.3316 16,250.00 $35,164.89
Senior Assistant PD 0.3316 16,250.00 $42,944.87
Assistant PD 0.3316 16,250.00 $35,330.96
Assistant PD 0.3316 16,250.00 $35,330.96
Assistant PD 0.3316 16,250.00 $32,770.56
Assistant PD 0.3316 16,250.00 $35,330.96
Paralegal 0.3316 16,250.00 $26,364.51
Paralegal 0.3316 16,250.00 $26,364.51
Paralegal 0.3316 16,250.00 $26,364.51
Legal Secretary - Senior 0.3316 16,250.00 $23,913.32
Legal Secretary - Senior 0.3316 16,250.00 $22,180.59
Social Worker 0.3316 16,250.00 $33,648.68
Social Worker 0.3316 16,250.00 $33,648.68
Investigator 0.3316 16,250.00 $30,519.96
Investigator 0.3316 16,250.00 $30,519.96
Law Clerk Intern 0.0364 N/A $409.98
Law Clerk Intern 0.0364 N/A $409.98
User Support Specialist I 0.3316 16,250.00 $26,679.45
Category Summary 682,500.00 1,479,019.86 2,161,519.86 0.00 0.00 2,161,519.86
Contracts for Attorneys Services Provided Calculation hours and rate Total State Grant Local Share
Other Funding
Sources Total
Roster Attorneys - SHIFT
OCJ - arraignment atty - Holidays. This includes arraignment services for all
courts participating in the weekend arraignment program. This will be paid
at a shift rate of $960, which equates to 6 hours at $160/hour to take into
account a holiday premium. The rate is paid for shifts on teh actual date of
the holiday, and the date on which Oakland County recognizes the holiday
(if those dates are different).
16 days x 1 attys x $960 rate
No PD Adjustment 15,360.00
Roster Attorneys - SHIFT
OCJ - arraignment atty - Weekend. This includes arraignment services for
all courts participating in the weekend arraignment program. This will be
paid at a shift rate of $900, which equates to 6 hours at $150/hour to take
into account a weekend premium.
102 days x 1 attys x 900 rate
No PD Adjustment 91,800.00
Roster Attorneys - SHIFT
OCJ - arraignment atty - Weekdays. This includes arraignment services for
all third class district courts. This will be paid at a shift rate of $810, which
equates to 6 hours at $135/hour. PD Office generally covers three shifts
each week, but that is reduced in holiday weeks.
247 days x 3 attys x $810 rate = $600,210
Minus 144 shifts of PD coverage (-$116,640)483,570.00
Roster Attorneys - SHIFT
Arraignment Atty Four (4) 52nd District Courts. Each court requires an
arraignment attorney to be present for a three hour morning shift and a
three hour afternoon shift to handle all scheduled and walk-in
arraignments. In 52-4, two attorneys are needed on Wednesday mornings
to account for the fact that it is an extremely heavy arraignment day. Paid
at the shift rate of $810/day, to equate to 6 hours at $135/hour. PD Office
generally covers three shifts each week, but that is reduced in holiday
weeks.
247 days x 4 attys x $810 rate = $800,280
51 half-days x 1 atty x $405 rate = $20,655
Minus 144 shifts of PD coverage (-$116,640)704,295.00
Roster Attorneys - SHIFT
Arraignment Atty - Circuit Court Bench Warrants. This requires a 2 hour
shift each weekday, which will be paid at the shift rate of $300 ($150/hour
x 2 hours). The PD Office covers two shifts per month.
247 days x 1 atty x $300 rate = $74,100
Minus 24 days of PD coverage (-$7,200)66,900.00
Because of the accelearate due date of this compliance plan,we do not yet have the fringe benefit memo for FY27.Therefore we are using FY26 fringe benefits to calculate this category,and the actual amounts may be higher or lower depending on the FY27 rates.
Fringe benefits for FTE salaries:33.16%,which is allocated as follows:
FICA 7.65%
Retirement 23.13%
Disability 1.50%
Unemployment 0.05%
Group Life/Accident 0.22%
Workers Compensation 0.61%
Fringe Benefits for OT Salaries:33.0%,which is allocated 75%to retirement and 25%to FICA
Fringe Benefits for PTNE Law Clerk Interns:3.64%,which is allocated 1.45%FICA,1.53%Retirement,0.05%Unemployment,0.61%Workers Compensation
FY2026 Fixed Medical Benefits is broken down as follows:
Oakland County is self-insured for Medical,Dental,and Vision Benefits.The Cost Analysis assumes a 2 person plan for these benefits.Medical/Prescription -$15,370,Dental -$844.00,Vision -$36.00 =Total -$16,250
Egrams total for fringes is based on the Egrams FTE salaries of $xxx,OT salaries of $xxx,and PTNE salaries of $xxx due to rounding to three decimal places for salaries vs.four on spreadsheet.
Therefore,Egrams total for fringes is $x.xx less than on spreadsheet.
Roster Attorneys - SHIFT
Misdemeanors. Each docket will have an assigned attorney, however the
attorney will be paid for, and expected to conduct, pre-court preparation
including discovery review and client contact. The attorney will be
continued on any trial cases or other complex cases that do not resolve on
their docket day, thus ensuring vertical representation. Attorneys will be
paid a shift rate of $405 for a 3 hour shift, and we expect an average of 3
hours of pre-court prep time per docket. We expect approximately 600
cases per year to continue, based on historical data, which will require on
average another 5 hours of time on each of those cases based on FY26
data.
108 half-day dockets/month x $405
PD Adjustment already factored 524,880.00
Roster Attorneys - HOURLY Misdemeanors - precourt docket preparation as outlined above.
2.63 prep hours per docket based on historical
averages x $135/hour.
PD adjustment already factored 460,144.80
Roster Attorneys - HOURLY Misdemeanors - continued individual appointments as outlined above.
576 continued cases with average voucher amount
of 5.39 hours based on historical averages x
$135/hour.
PD adjustment already factored 419,126.40
Roster Attorneys - HOURLY
Specialty Treatment Courts - (4) 52nd District Courts. There are
approximately 230 dockets per year, with an average of 3 hours spent on
each docket. This will be paid hourly, at the rate of $135/hour. The PD
Office covers the Operation DRIVE dockets, which saves us from having to
pay a roster attorney for these.
228 dockets x 2.53 hour average x $135
PD adjustment already factored.77,873.40
Roster Attorneys - HOURLY
Specialty Treatment Courts - Circuit Court. This will be paid at the hourly
rate of $150/hour. The average monthly billings for this has historically
been between 20 - 25 hours.
1 atty x 19.2 hours/month x 12 months x $150
No PD Adjustment 34,560.00
Roster Attorneys - HOURLY
District Court to Circuit Court Appeals and Interlocutory Appeals. Our plan
assumes 6 interlocutory appeal each year and 6 District Court appeals
each year, with an average of 15 hours. $135/hour for DC appeals, and the
applicable felony rate for interlocutory appeals.
6 appeals x 15 hours x $215 = $19,350
6 appeals x 15 hours x $135 = $12,150
No PD Adjustment 31,500.00
Roster Attorneys - HOURLY
Circuit Court Probation Violations. Based on historical averages, after
removing PD Office coverage, we expect 1,200 VOP vouchers each year,
with an average of 2.41 hours per voucher.
1,200 x 2.41 hrs x $150
PD Office adjustment already factored 433,800.00
Roster Attorneys - HOURLY
Life Offenses: Average of 179 vouchers/year with 32.19 hours/voucher
High-Severity and Hab. 4 Life: Average of 1204 vouchers/year with 13.26
hours/voucher.
Low-Severity: Average of 3396 vouchers/year with 9.45 hours/voucher.
Capital: 179x32.19x$215=$1,238,832.15
HS and H4L: 1204x13.26x$160=$2,554,406.40
LS: 3396x9.45x$150=$4,813,830.00
Total: $8,607,068.55, plus 2% overage based on
caseload uncertainty and lifer cases.8,779,209.92
Category Summary 12,123,019.52 10,255,857.60 1,867,161.92 0.00 12,123,019.52
Contracts for Experts and Investigators Services Provided Calculation hours and rate Total State Grant Local Share
Other Funding
Sources Total
Investigators
$125 per hr x 150 hrs/month based on FY25
spending.250,000.00
Experts
Experts paid at MIDC grant manual rate, other than
exceptional circumstances where higher market rate
is necessary to ensure effective defense
representation.650,000.00
Category Summary 900,000.00 900,000.00 0.00 0.00 900,000.00
Contracts for Construction Projects Services Provided Calculation Total State Grant Local Share
Other Funding
Sources Total
Category Summary 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.0000
Contracts Other Services Provided Calulation Total State Grant Local Share
Other Funding
Sources Total
Defender Data License fee for DefenderData case management system in the PD Office.
$30/month/user, planned at 1 user to maintain
continuity when switching systems in FY26.360.00
ZLS License fee for ZLS case management system in the PD Office $126.24/month/user, planned at 27 users.40,901.76
Legal Research Service LexisNexis
LexisNexis subscription for all IDSO and PD Office
attorneys, as an addendum to Oakland County's
existing blanket contract with LexisNexis. The
professional user rate is up to 20 users at
$1,244/month.14,928.00
This plan continues to pay hourly rates that are at,or above,the minimum Standard 8 rate.This includes any shift rates,which are set as a factor of the Standard 8 rate (i.e.,a three hour arraignment shift is paid at $405).We believe that it is extremely important for our system to set competitive rates in some felony cases which are
above the minimum Standard 8 rate to ensure that we continue to attract and retain talented attorneys in a County which contains some of the highest paid attorneys in the entire State.We also firmly believe that our felony rates need to be structured so that there is an incentive for attorneys to accept appointments for capital cases
and high-severity felony cases.If the separation between capital and non-capital cases is minimal,that does not entice attorneys to take on all of the responsibilities that come with a capital case appointment,and ultimately harms our system.So too,high-severity felony cases,which include difficult CSC 2nd and 3rd degree cases,are
paid the same as other non-capital cases,attorneys have no incentive to take those higher level cases.This is why we are proposing a rate of $215/hour for capital cases,$160 for High-Severity Felony and Habitual 4th Life Max cases,$150 for Low-Severity Felony cases,and $135 for misdemeanor cases.This puts our capital case fee
close,but still less than,the rate paid to federal appoitned defense counsel,and it ensures that any habitual 4th cases where the maximum penalty on the habitual is life are paid slightly above the Standard 8 minimum for capital cases.
FY27 Rate Increase Percentages:Capital:2.4%,High-Severity and Hab.4 Life -3.2%,Low-Severity -3.4%,Misdemeanor -3.8%
Total FY27 Contracts for Attorneys increase is 8.9%
In 4.5 months of FY26 we have appropriated $275,000 to expert requests.This includes actual paid invoices,plus approved requests that have not yet been paid.Projecting out from that amount,and adding in at least 10 Czarnecki cases that we expect to need expert assistance in FY27,we believe that an expert budget of $650,000 is
appropriate.In 4.5 months of FY26 we have appropriated $97,000 to investigator requests.This includes actual paid invoices,plus approved requets that have not yet been paid.Projecting out from that amount,and including our responsibility to fund investigator requests for MAACS attonreys as well per the MIDC,we believe that an
investigator budget of $250,000 is appropriate.
Background Check Service ThompsonReuters
Subscription for CLEAR background investigation
software for PD Office investigators. $385.88/month
for 2 users in FY26 per current CLEAR contract with
Oakland County.4,630.56
JusticeText
Cloud-based software for analysis and transcription of audio and video
evidence.
Yearly cost for 20 licenses. Licenses are sold in blocks
of 10.25,806.46
Category Summary 86,626.78 86,626.78 0.00 0.00 86,626.78
Equipment Vendor Calculation Total State Grant Local Share
Other Funding
Sources Total
Category Summary 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
Training/Travel Vendor Calculation Total State Grant Local Share
Other Funding
Sources Total
Attorney Bar Dues State Bar of Michigan
Membership Dues for all attorneys (19 attorneys x
$415)7,885.00
Oakland County CLE Training and Tracking Oakland County Bar Association
$25,000 Annual Administrative Cost Fee and
$150,000 fixed amount based on up to 500
attorneys. This covers all roster attorneys in Oakland
County including the 3rd class District Courts.175,000.00
CDAM Conference CDAM
Registration fee for up to 100 attorneys for one
CDAM conference at the rate of $600/attorney, with
any surplus used to fund various CDAM trainings
when necessary for attorney performance
considerations.60,000.00
Yearly subscription to SADO Criminal Law
Resource Center SADO
$85 per attorney. Oakland County will be the central
source of funding for all roster attorneys, including
the 3rd class district courts. Estimated total is based
on 300 attorneys.25,500.00
Social Worker Licenses State of Michigan License fee for social workers, 2 x $82.50 165.00
Humanitarian Various
Funding to facilitate a client's access to the justice
system, including transportation, lodging, and meals
consistent with MRPC 1.8(e)2,500.00
NAPD Licenses National Association of Public Defenders
Oakland County will be the central source of funding
for all roster attorneys, including the 3rd class
district courts. Estimated total is based on 300
attorneys, which puts us in the NAPD tier of 226 -
500 attorneys.5,000.00
Training/Conference for PD Office employees Various training conferences
Estimate based on availability of trainings for PD
Office attorneys, investigators, and social workers.15,000.00
Employee Mileage
Paid directly to employees who are required to travel from their main
work location to court at the prevailing IRS mileage rate. Employees are
not paid for travel to their main work location.
Total calculation is an estimate based on the actuals
that we have seen with current PD Office employees
in FY26.10,000.00
Travel Time Various contract attorneys Travel time paid for client visits not in local custody.5,000.00
Training Meals Various
The PD Office will pay for lunch for its staff in
situations where they are holding a mandatory
internal training which will span the lunch hour. The
office plans to hold two of these trainings each year,
and would pay for a meal for each staff member (27
people) at the state rate of $19.00/meal.1,026.00
Category Summary 307,076.00 307,076.00 0.00 0.00 307,076.00
Supplies/Services Vendor Calculation Total State Grant Local Share
Other Funding
Sources Total
Transcripts/FOIA Various Court Reporters and attorneys
Cost based on historical spending on transcript
reimbursement to assist indigent defense counsel
and including miscellaneous reimbursement to
attorneys for necessary FOIA requests and other
miscellaneous needs to assist clients.100,000.00
Intepreter Fees Various certified foreign language interpreters
Fees to allow attorneys to have an interpreter for
out of court meetings in situations not covered by
the court's language plan.3,000.00
Furniture Purchase Various Facilities Vendors
Furniture for one added PD Office employee, plus
two standing desk units to replace the remaining two
old-style desks in PD Office.10,304.00
Office Supplies/Postage/Copying Fees
Office supplies, metered and standard mailing postage, copy paper and
copy fees.
Estimate based on historical actuals and comparison
to Prosecutor's Office budget per employee. This
includes all office supplies, all postage, all copy costs,
and any miscellaneous legal publications (e.g.,
sentencing guidelines manual, court rules) where it is
necessary to purchase a printed version. This may
also include miscellaneous software license fees such
as Zoom and GoToMyPC.15,000.00
Computer equipment purchase for new public
defender employee (laptop, docking station, extra
monitor, wireless keyboard/mouse).Dell (computer vendor), paid through Info Tech Dept Per IT price list 1,597.17
Poly arraignment camera replacement.AVI-SPL, LLC (formerly SKC)
Licenses for OCJ arraignment camera software plus
miscellaneous IT service hours.26,479.84
Indirect Costs
Actual necessary indirect costs based on Maximus
study and analysis of Oakland County internal service
fund charges.
1,216,199.00 Still finalizing this amount
IDSO Appointment and Voucher Database Oakland County IT, directly billed to the department.
The IT Department must expend a number of hours
each quarter supporting, maintaining, and upgrading
the database that we use to make appointments and
pay attorneys. This estimate is based on the actual
hours expended in FY24 and FY25. This is an
equivalent cost to what we would be required to pay
in subscription fees if we purchased our database
from an outside vendor. This includes 280 hours of
expected support, maintenance, and upgrades at the
standard IT rate of $165/hour.46,200.00
FY26 Placeholder amount while waiting for updated
estimate
Category Summary 1,418,780.01 1,418,780.01 0.00 0.00 1,418,780.01
Indirect Costs Vendor Calculation Total State Grant Local Share
Other Funding
Sources Total
Indirect Costs
In Egrams, if a system is seeking indirect costs in an
amount greater than the 10% de minimis rate it is
placed into the supplies/services category. Therefore
this category is set at $0, even though there are
indirect costs being requested.0.00
Category Summary 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.0000
Data Collection Vendor Calculation Total State Grant Local Share
Other Funding
Sources Total
Category Summary 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.0000
Compliance Planning Costs Vendor Calculation Total State Grant Local Share
Other Funding
Sources Total
Category Summary 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.0000
Budget Total 21,477,360.41 19,610,198.49 1,867,161.92 0.00 21,477,360.41
Compliance Plan and Cost Analysis Renewal - FY 2027 Applicant
FOR OFFICE USE ONLY: Version # APP #
1. Applicant Information
a. Applicant Name Oakland County
b. Organizational Unit Oakland C 6 & D 52-1, 2, 3, 4
c. Address 1200 N. Telegraph Rd.
d. Address 2
e. City Pontiac State MI Zip 48341
f. Federal ID Number 24-8858048 Reference No. Unique Entity Id.
g. Agency's fiscal year (beginning month and day) October-01
h. Agency Type
City Township County
Village
2. Project Information
a. Project Name Compliance Plan and Cost Analysis Renewal - FY 2027
b. Is implementing agency same as Applicant
c. Implementing Agency Name
Yes No
d. Project Start Date Oct-01-2026 End Date Sep-30-2027
e. Amount of Funds Requested $ Project Cost $
f. Agency Local Share: 1,878,134.47
3.
a.
Contacts
Project Director / Primary Contact
Name
Peter Menna
Title
Mailing Address
City
MAC Administrator
1200 N. Telegraph Rd.
Pontiac State MI
Zip
48341
Telephone
E-mail Address
(248) 858-1619
mennap@oakgov.com
Fax
b. Authorized Official
Name
David Woodward
Title
Mailing Address
City
Chair, Board of County Commissioners
1200 North Telegraph Road
Pontiac State MI
Zip
48341
Telephone
E-mail Address
(248) 858-0100
woodwardd@oakgov.com
Fax
c. Financial Officer
Name
Sheryl Johnson
Title
Mailing Address
City
Deputy CFO
1200 N. Telegraph Rd.
Pontiac State MI
Zip
48341
Telephone
E-mail Address
(248) 858-0049
johnsonsh@oakgov.com
Fax
Note that these questions are taken from our FY26 Egrams submission. Per MIDC staff, thequestions are not expected to be significantly changed for FY27. I have modified our answersbased on the updated information for FY27.
Additional Information
Submitter Information
Funding Unit/System Name: Oakland C 6 & D 52-1, 2, 3, 4
I hereby certify that I am authorized to submit the application and the information and representations
contained in the application is true and correct.
Submitted By (include name, title, email address and phone number):
Name: Peter Menna
Title: MAC Administrator
Email Address: mennap@oakgov.com
Phone Number: (248) 858-1619
Date:
Signature:
Delivery System Model
1. What type of indigent defense delivery system do you have currently? (indicate all that apply):
Public Defender Office (county employees)
Public Defender Office (non-profit/vendor model)
Managed Assigned Counsel System (Name of MAC Attorney Manager and P#:)
[Pete Menna, P72671]
Contract Defender System
Regionalized system or coordination with other trial court funding units
If you are unsure about your type of indigent defense delivery system, more information can be found in MIDC’s
report entitled Delivery System Reform Models (2016), posted here: https://michiganidc.gov/resources.
Questions can also be directed to your MIDC Regional Manager.
2. Are you proposing to change your type of indigent defense delivery system for next
year? Please respond Yes or No.
3. If you are changing your indigent defense
delivery system, what model do you plan to
use next year?
Yes No
Standard 1 - Training and Education
4. Number of attorneys who accept adult criminal defense assignments as of October
1: 210
5. Number of attorneys with less than 2 years of Michigan criminal defense experience
as of October 1: 2
In EGrAMS, please include a list of names and P#s of all the attorneys who accept adult criminal defense case
assignments in your system, including conflict counsel and counsel for youths charged as adults and
qualification level for assignments.
6. What is your plan for training attorneys with less than 2 years of Michigan criminal defense experience?
All attorneys with less than 2 years of criminal defense experience are required to take a basic skills course
consisting of at least 16 hours. We encourage all new attorneys to work with the OCBA and/or CDAM to
accomplish this requirement, and we also provide links to the free skills courses managed by Keeley
Blanchard.
7. Please describe your system’s training plan, including how compliance will be tracked for reporting
requirements:
Our plan is a county-wide plan and covers training for all attorneys providing indigent defense services in the
Oakland County Circuit Court and District Courts. Oakland County contracts with the Oakland County Bar
Association (OCBA) to provide all continuing legal education training to the attorneys providing indigent
defense services for the County. Attorneys are also free to participate in any eligible non-OCBA trainings as
well, and we forward all training emails received from the MIDC to our attorney roster.
The OCBA assists with tracking all attorney continuing legal education credits (CLEs) and reporting those to
the County and the MIDC to ensure that attorneys who are not in compliance will be removed from our list.
Over the last year, we have encouraged our attorneys to also open a CE Broker account and report their own
CLE, especially if they take classes outside of the OCBA which many of our attorneys do.
Will you require your attorneys to submit attendance directly through the MIDC’s
continuing legal education database provider, CE Broker?
Yes xx No
If no, please describe how attendance will be tracked and reported to the MIDC:
We will highly encourage every attorney to submit through CE Broker, but setting it as a mandate implies that
attorneys would have to suffer some sort of repercussion if they fail to do so, which we do not believe is
appropriate for our system. Since we have an independent check on CLE credits through the OCBA, we feel
that a strict requirement for attorneys to report through CE Broker is unnecessary. But again, we will strongly
encourage it.
8. If an attorney does not complete the required training, how will the system address the noncompliance?
By January 15th of every year, attorneys who have not completed the required number of CLE hours in the
previous year and provided proof of same are removed from our Circuit and District Court appointment roster
unless and until those CLE hours are obtained pursuant to the MIDC's requirements. However, attorneys are
expected to finish any pending cases as abrupt reassignment could cause unintended consequences to their
clients, which would not be in the clients' best interests.
Standard 2 - Initial Interview
9. The MIDC Standards require the selection and assignments of attorneys to be done independently from the
judiciary. How and when are defense attorneys notified of new assignments?
All attorney assignments are managed by the Indigent Defense Services Office, which is a division reporting
directly to the County Executive and independent from the Judiciary. The IDSO notifies roster attorneys of
assignments by email or phone as soon as possible after receiving the completed request paperwork from the
Court, which depends on the volume of requests received in any given day. Similarly, the IDSO notifies the PD
office of assignments and the Chief PD assigns the cases to her staff.
10. How are you verifying that in-custody attorney client interviews occur within three business days?
When an attorney submits a payment voucher, there are mandatory fields on the voucher submission where
they must state if the client was in custody or not in custody. If the client was in custody, the attorney must
certify that the interview was conducted within three business days. If the interview was not conducted within
three business days, a mandatory field pops up in which the attorney must write an explanation for why they
were not able to complete the visit within three business days. We will also s ee from the attorney's time
itemization whether a visit was conducted. For PD Office attorneys, we keep a shared spreadsheet where the
assigned attorney must list the date on which they conducted the initial interview
11. How are you verifying attorneys’ introductory communications with out -of-custody clients?
The attorney must certify on their payment voucher that they conducted an initial client interview or delivered
an introductory communication to an out of custody client as required by Standard 2. We will also see the
interview listed on the attorney's time itemization. For PD Office attorneys, we keep a shared spreadsheet
where the assigned attorney must list the date on which they conducted the initial interview.
12. How are you compensating attorneys for conducting initial interviews? Please include whether you intend to
compensate attorneys differently for in-custody and out-of-custody interviews.
Attorneys are paid the hourly rate that is applicable to that specific case type. There is no different compensation
for in-custody vs. out-of-custody interviews.
Confidential Meeting Spaces
13. How many confidential meeting spaces are in the jail? 28
14. What is the TOTAL amount of confidential meeting spaces in the courthouse? 17
15. How many confidential meeting spaces in the courthouse are for in-custody clients? 6
Please describe these spaces.
In the video arraignment room area of the OCJ there are 7 rooms that can be used for attorney interviews, 6 of
which are equipped with Polycom technology to allow for remote interviews and arraignments. There are also 21
other confidential meeting rooms in the OCJ that are used for attorney meetings. Confidentiality is assured for
virtual meetings by moving inmates out of their cell and into a private meeting room when participating in an
attorney meeting.
The Circuit Court has two in-custody confidential meeting rooms, and the 52-1, 52-2, 52-3, and 52-4 District
Courts each have one in-custody confidential meeting room. These rooms are contained within the “lockup”
area of the applicable courthouse, and the inmate is separated from other inmates and placed into a separate
room where the attorney can enter, and confidentiality can be assured.
16. How many confidential meeting spaces in the courthouse are for out -of-custody 7
clients?
Please describe these spaces.
The Circuit Court has 3 designated confidential meeting spaces that are reserved solely for the use of
appointed criminal defense attorneys. There are also several other rooms within the Circuit Court building that,
while not reserved for such use, can be used for confidential communication if they are available. The total
number of rooms available for this purpose in Circuit Court is at least 8, but we only count the 3 reserved
rooms in our total above. The four divisions of the 52nd District Court each have at least 1 out -of-custody
confidential meeting room that is reserved for the use of appointed criminal defense attorneys. As in Circuit,
there are also several other rooms that can be used for confidential communication if they are available, so the
true number of rooms is estimated to be about 20 across the four District Courts, though for purposes of this
question we only count one room for each District Court.
17. Any changes from the prior year’s compliance plan for your confidential meeting
spaces? Please respond Yes or No.
Yes xx No
If Yes, please describe the proposed changes.
Standard 3 - Investigation and Experts
18. The MIDC Standards require approval of expert and investigative assistance to be independent from the
judiciary. Describe the process of how attorneys request expert witness assistance for their indigent clients:
Request forms for experts and investigators have been distributed to all roster attorneys and are available on
the IDSO's website. Attorneys, both roster and PD (except as noted in Q20), submit these requests directly to
the Chief Attorney of the IDSO, and requests are typically reviewed and decided within 24-48 hours. In the
event the Chief Attorney denies a request, the attorney has the option to appeal the denial to the Oakland
County Criminal Assignment Committee
19. Any change from the prior year’s process to request expert witness assistance?
Please respond Yes or No.
Yes No
If yes, please explain the change:
20. Describe the process of how attorneys request investigative assistance:
Request forms for experts and investigators have been distributed to all roster attorneys and are available on
the IDSO's website. Attorneys submit these requests directly to the Chief Attorney of the IDSO, and requests
are typically reviewed and decided within 24-48 hours. In the event the Chief Attorney denies a request, the
attorney has the option to appeal the denial to the Oakland County Criminal Assignment Committee. Absent
extraordinary circumstances, the PD attorneys will make their requests to the Chief PD and utilize the
employee investigators of the PD Office. If the PD attorneys need extraordinary investigative assistance, they
will follow the procedure used by the roster attorneys.
21. Any change from the prior year’s process to request investigative assistance?
Please respond Yes or No.
Yes No
If yes, please explain the change:
22. How are attorney requests (whether approved or denied) for experts and investigators tracked by the system?
Please include approved and denied requests.
The Chief Attorney of the IDSO tracks every request by using a spreadsheet, and keeping a completed copy of
each request form with approval/denial decision notated on the form. When expert or investigator vouchers are
submitted they are input into the County's fiscal system (Workday) and compared to the Chief Attorney's
spreadsheet to ensure accuracy. The PD office will track and report the use of the office investigator on a
monthly basis for the IDSO.
Standard 4 - Counsel at First Appearance
23. The MIDC Standards require the selection and assignments of attorneys to be done independently from the
judiciary. How are you providing counsel at first appearance and all arraignments? Please provide detail for
circuit and district court coverage.
The IDSO is responsible for assigning attorneys on a rotational basis for all first appearances/arraignments.
The IDSO is a County Executive division which is completely independent of the Judiciary. There is an
arraignment attorney scheduled each week day at each of the four divisions of the 52nd District Court to
handle scheduled and walk-in arraignments. There are multiple arraignment attorneys scheduled each
weekday to represent defendants who are being arraigned from the Oakland County Jail in all of the Oakland
County District Courts. There is an attorney appointed each weekday to handle Circuit Court bench warrant
arraignments. There is an attorney appointed each Saturday and Sunday and County ho liday to handle
arraignments under the 52nd District Court's weekend arraignment program.
24. How are you providing counsel at all other critical stages? Please provide details:
Oakland County is a "hybrid" system, where a portion of our caseload is assigned to independent contract
roster attorneys and a portion of our caseload is assigned to the Public Defender's Office. The Public
Defender's Office is an internal office staffed by Oakland County employees. At the present time, based on the
staffing numbers of the PD Office and using the Feasibilty Study performed by the 6th Amendment Center and
the RAND caseload study as our guide, we expect the Public Defender's Office to take approximately 20% of
our overall caseload, assuming all available attorney positions are filled in FY2 7.
The portion of our felony caseload that is assigned to roster attorneys is done using a rotational database
system, which ensures that all attorneys have a fair chance of receiving a case offer in their applicable
category level.
Our misdemeanor caseload will be managed using a modified house counsel system. A true house counsel
system, which Oakland County used for many years, provides an attorney for each misdemeanor docket.
However, the attorney is essentially not responsible for doing anything prior to their docket day to prepare,
meaning that attorneys do not contact clients ahead of the court date and do not make any attempt to obtain
discovery from the applicable prosecuting official. We do NOT use that type of house counsel model any
longer. We now require all docket attorneys to obtain discovery and communicate with all clients prior to their
assigned docket. Attorneys itemize all of their pre-court preparation work and are paid an hourly rate for doing
that work.
All attorneys assigned to a misdemeanor docket are given a copy of the docket in advance, typically one week.
They will have the name and contact information for every indigent defendant on their docket and are expected
to contact each client prior to the docket day to discuss their case and the court process. The attorney will also
be given information about the prosecuting official for each docket, and how to obtain discovery. The attorney
is expected to obtain as much discovery as possible prior to the docket day so that they can have substantive
conversations with each client. In this way, our modified house counsel system performs, in effect, much like
what we currently call an "individual appointment" case. If the IDSO staff determines that a docket contains an
unusually high number of cases, such that one attorney could not be expected to effectively represent all
clients, we will assign a second docket attorney to that docket. We base this decision not only on the number of
cases, but also the types of cases and their expected complexity.
The docket attorney will be continued on any case that is set for trial, meaning that client will have vertical
representation. On cases that are not set for trial, we will continue the docket attorney on the case if there are
special circumstances raised either by the Court, or by the attorney, which would lead the Indigent Defense
Services Office to believe that the lack of continued representation would have a detrimental impact on the
progress of the defendant's case. We anticipate approximately one-third of our misdemeanor docket will result
in this type of attorney continuation.
The Chief Attorney of the Indigent Defense Services Office and the Chief Public Defender will meet regularly to
discuss the office's capacity for new assignments. These meetings will affect the frequency within which the
office receives assignments from the rotation, and how many District Court dockets the office is able to staff.
We also have established a relationship with the U of D Mercy law clinic, and intend to use student attorneys,
overseen by an experienced legal professor and licensed attorney, to handle one docket day each week in the
52-4 District Court in Troy. We believe that this program, which has seen success in other courts, will allow us
to continue to expose students to indigent criminal defense as a calling, and attract the next generation of
legal talent to our system and those in our surrounding areas.
25. How are you compensating attorneys for Standard 4? Please provide detail for compensating counsel at first
appearance and compensating counsel at all other critical stages.
Most of the cases in our system will be paid at hourly rates. This includes all felony appointments, which is a
significant portion of our budget. For cases that are paid hourly, there is no cap on the number of hours that
attorneys may itemize. Of course, all invoices will be reviewed for reasonableness, and the Indigent Defense
Services Office may engage in conversations with attorneys who consistently exceed our generalized
expectation of how many hours should be spent on each type of case. There will be no need to seek
extraordinary fees on cases that are paid hourly, since there is no cap on the number of hours that can be
itemized, assuming all work is reasonably related to the needs of the case. Attorneys may seek reimbursement
for case related expenses within their voucher. Transcripts ordered by appointed attorneys are billed directly to
the IDSO and attorneys do not have to seek reimbursement for transcript requests.
Hourly Rates:
We plan a four-tiered hourly rate system which creates differentiation between multiple felony levels. This is
necessary to ensure that attorneys have an incentive to move up to increasingly higher levels of felony
representation, and to attract and retain the most qualified capital attorneys possible. We have seen a
decrease in the number of attorneys willing to take capital cases over the last several years. Some have
returned since we started paying those cases hourly this fiscal year, but we believe a rate increase is both
necessary and appropriate. Our capital rate is still lower than the rate paid to federal defenders, which is our
direct competition. Many of the experienced capital attorneys we have lost over the last few years have told us
that the pay in the federal system is a significant motivating factor. Also, the tri-county area has some of the
best paid lawyers in the State of Michigan, with the SBM Economics of Law practice study from 2023 finding
that the median rate for all attorneys in Oakland County is $325/hour. The median rate for all criminal law
practitioners in the state was $300/hour for felony cases and $250/hour for misdemeanor cases.
Capital Cases - $215/hour. This category is reserved for cases where the underlying offense is punishable by
life in prison. Habitual offender status is irrelevant for this category. This rate would also apply to any juveniles
who are entitled to resentencing based on receiving a sentence of life without parole under Parks/Poole or any
other cases that may be issued by the Court of Appeals or Supreme Court.
Capital Case 2nd Chair - in some of our more serious capital cases, where it would be appropriate to assign a
2nd chair, we would pay the 2nd chair attorney the rate of $160/hour, which is still in compliance with MIDC
Standard 8.
Category 2 Case - these are cases which would be considered "high-severity" felonies, where the underlying
charge is punishable by more than 5 years. We indend to pay these cases at the rate of
$160/hour. This differentiation will give our felony attorneys more incentive to move up from Category 3 into
Category 2.
Habitual 4th Life Maximum Cases - any case where the defendant is charged as a habitual 4th offender with a
life maximum will be paid at the rate of $160/hour. This ensures that any case where the maximum is increased
to life because of a habitual filing complies with the Standard 8 rate.
Category 3/4 Cases - these are cases which would be considered "low-severity" felonies, where the underlying
charge is punishable by 5 years or less. These cases would be paid at the rate of
$150/hour, unless the habitual 4th rate applies as stated above. The $150/hour rate would also apply to all
felony probation violation appointments, as well as the assigned adult treatment court attorney.
Misdemeanor cases - misdemeanor cases will be paid at the rate of $135/hour. This hourly rate would apply to
all pre-court preparation work done by the assigned house counsel, and any work done on misdemeanor
individual appointment cases. This rate would also apply to all District Court appeals.
Shift Rates:
In the following situations, we do intend to pay a shift rate. However, the shift rate is designed to approximate
the Standard 8 rate and is easier to use for those situations (like arraignment shifts, for example) where
attorneys are required to be present and on call for the entirety of a shift. For any shift rate, attorneys will be
paid hourly if their actual work time exceeds the expected shift hours.
District Court Arraignments
We provide an attorney each weekday in each of the four divisions of the 52nd District Court to handle all
scheduled and walk-in arraignments. This is a 6-hour shift (3 hour AM, 3 hour PM) where the attorney will be
paid $810, which equates to 6 hours at $135/hour. Attorneys will be strictly prohibited from double -billing for
this time, meaning that the attorney cannot get paid for an arraignment shift while also itemizing hourly work on
an individual appointment case during any "down time" in the arraignment shift. Attorneys choosing to work on
other cases during "down time" will be required to strictly separate their time and would then be paid hourly for
only that amount of time devoted to arraignment work, and separately for any work performed on other cases.
Oakland County Jail Arraignments
The same principles apply to OCJ arraignments. The weekday arraignment attorneys will be paid a
$810 shift rate, to equate to 6 hours of time at $135/hour. On the weekends, attorneys will be paid a shift rate of
$900, which equates to 6 hours of time at $150 per hour. On holidays, attorneys will be paid a shift rate of
$960, which equates to 6 hours of time at $160 per hour. We must provide higher shift payments for weekend
and holiday work, otherwise attorneys have no incentive to provide this service to our system.
Circuit Court Bench Warrants
We will pay a shift rate of $300, which equates to 2 hours of time at $150/hour.
District Court House Counsel
We will pay a shift rate of $405 for each half-day house counsel docket, which equates to 3 hours of time at the
rate of $135/hour. The caveats about double-billing applied to arraignment shifts also apply here. This is meant
to compensate the attorney for the time that they have to be actually present in court, as it is always possible
for district court dockets to have "add ons" that need to meet with the house counsel (generally people who did
not request appointed counsel after arraignment, but change their mind when they appear for the pretrial).
It is also very important to note that the district court shift rate only applies to the time spent in court handling
the docket. All pre-docket activities, including pre-court client communication and docket preparation, and all
work on cases where the attorney is continued on the file after the docket day, will be billed hourly at the rate
of $135/hour. For example, if an attorney spends 2 hours preparing for a house counsel docket by obtaining
discovery, contacting clients, etc., they would actually be paid $6 75 ($405 shift rate for court time, plus two
hours of itemized pre-court time at $135/hour).
26. Do you have a prison in your County? Yes No
If Yes, how is counsel provided to people charged with crimes while incarcerated in the prison?
Do you seek reimbursement for the cost of counsel from the Michigan Department
of Corrections?
27. Are there or will there be any misdemeanor cases where your court accepts pleas
without the defendant appearing before a magistrate or a judge? For example,
pleas by mail, over the counter pleas, pleas online, etc. Please answer Yes or No.
Yes No
Yes No
28. Describe how counsel is offered to a defendant making a plea who does not appear before a magistrate or
judge:
In order to accept a plea by mail/counter/online, etc., the 52nd District Court requires a defendant wanting to
enter such a plea to complete the SCAO form which advises the defendant of their right to an attorney. If the
defendant wishes to be represented by an attorney the court does not accept the plea and sets the case for a
hearing date at which an attorney is appointed to represent the defendant.
29. Any change from the prior year’s attorney compensation for Standard 4? Please
respond Yes or No.
Yes No
Standard 5 - Attorney Assignment
The MIDC Standards require independence from the court including the selection and assignment of attorneys,
attorney compensation and approval of requests for expert and investigative assistance.
30. How will attorneys be selected to provide adult indigent criminal defense services in your indigent defense
system? Please describe any eligibility requirements needed by the attorneys as well as the selection process:
Attorneys are added to our felony roster through an application process where they are required to answer
several detailed questions about their prior criminal law experience. The application questions also correspond
to the requirements of Standard 7. Our attorney roster is overseen by a criminal assignment committee, which
is made up of the Chief Attorney of the Indigent Defense Services Office, and five attorneys appointed by the
OCBA. There are also five judges on the committee, however the judges are not allowed to vote. All
applications are evaluated by using the requirements of Standard 7, and attorneys are placed into categories
based on the extent of their prior experience. The committee generally votes to place attorneys into the
category that corresponds to their Standard 7 qualification; however, exceptions can be made if an attorney
has demonstrated a significant history of high-quality representation that would merit higher placement.
The admission of attorneys to the misdemeanor roster is done by the Chief Attorney of the IDSO, using MIDC
Standard 7 requirements. We have not seen significant demand for new attorneys attempting to join the
misdemeanor roster such that it would be a productive use of time to form a separate criminal assignment
committee to oversee that roster.
The criminal assignment committee has no involvement in the assignment of individual cases. Once an
attorney is added to the roster, all assignments are done by the IDSO staff.
PD Office attorneys will be hired by the Chief Public Defender, who will review their qualifications to handle
different levels of cases within our system, using Standard 7 as a guide and assigning less experienced
attorneys as 2nd chairs when necessary to allow them to meet Standard 7 requirements.
31. Will the selection process be facilitated by a committee of stakeholders? Yes No
If so, please list the titles of participating officials, agencies, or departments as appropriate.
The addition of attorneys to the felony roster is facilitated by the criminal assignment committee, which consists
of the Chief Attorney of the IDSO and five attorneys appointed by the OCBA. There are also five judges on the
criminal assignment committee, however they are not allowed to vote.
The admission of attorneys to the misdemeanor roster are done by the Chief Attorney of the IDSO, using MIDC
Standard 7 requirements. We have not seen significant demand for new attorneys attempting to join the
misdemeanor roster such that it would be a productive use of time to form a separate criminal assignment
committee to oversee that roster. In the unlikely event that an attorney was denied admission to the district
court roster and wished to appeal that decision, the Chief Attorney would direct the Cr iminal Assignment
Committee to hear that appeal.
Once an attorney is added to the roster, all assignments are done by the IDSO staff, or by the Chief Public
Defender in cases that are assigned to the PD Office.
32. Who will approve an attorney’s eligibility to
receive assigned cases?
Pete Menna, Chief Attorney - Indigent Defense Services
Office
33. Who will assign work to the attorneys in the indigent defense system? Please include the person’s name, title,
employer and/or supervisor.
Person's Name: Pete Menna and other IDSO staff reporting to Pete Menna
Title: Chief Attorney - Indigent Defense Services Office
Employer and/or Supervisor: Oakland County Executive David Coulter
34. Who will review and approve attorney billing? Chief Attorney - IDSO and other IDSO staff reporting to Chief
Attorney
35. Who will approve requests for expert and
investigative assistance?
36. Who will review and approve expert and
investigative billing?
Chief Attorney - IDSO
Chief Attorney - IDSO and other IDSO staff reporting to Chief
Attorney
37. What is your appeal process to resolve any potential conflicts between the assigned attorney and the person(s)
assigning casework?
If there is a conflict between the assigned attorney and any IDSO employee, the conflict will be mediated and
resolved by the Chief Attorney of the IDSO. If there is a conflict between the assigned attorney and the Chief
Attorney of the IDSO, the conflict will be mediated and resolved either by the Criminal Assignment Committee,
or the Deputy County Executive who supervises the Chief Attorney of the IDSO.
38. What is your appeal process to resolve any potential conflicts between the assigned attorney and the person(s)
or reviewing/approving billing?
If there is a conflict between the assigned attorney and any IDSO employee, the conflict will be mediated and
resolved by the Chief Attorney of the IDSO. If there is a conflict between the assigned attorney and the Chief
Attorney of the IDSO, the conflict will be mediated and resolved by the Criminal Assignment Committee.
39. What is your appeal process to resolve denied or partially denied requests for expert or investigative
assistance?
If the Chief Attorney denies a request in whole or in part, the attorney may appeal the denial to the Criminal
Assignment Committee, which will hold a special meeting within 5 days after receipt of the appeal. The Chief
Attorney will recuse him/herself from voting on the issue under appeal, and it will be decided by the 5 attorney
voting members of the Committee.
Standard 6 – Indigent Defense Workloads
40. Public defender offices, assigned counsel, and contract attorneys should not exceed the caseload levels adopted in
MIDC Standard 6. Are there sufficient attorneys in your funding unit to meet the caseload standard? No
41. Please briefly describe your plan for monitoring and auditing caseloads, noting any changes from the prior year
I answered "no" for Question 40 because at this time, we do not know with certainty whether we have enough
attorneys to meet the requirements of Standard 6. We believe that in the context of attorneys who are only
taking felony cases, we have enough. We know that over the past three years, we have never had a situation
where an attorney was assigned to more than 150 felony cases in a year. However, many of our attorneys
also handle misdemeanor work and work in other systems, so it is not clear whether we truly have the number
that we need to comply with Standard 6.
We have an attorney employee of the IDSO responsible for managing our compliance with Standard 6 and
Standard 7. Our appointment database has been modified so that it tracks attorney caseloads, using the
Standard 6 criteria as a guide. The database calculates the caseload on a 365-day rolling basis, meaning that
a case (or docket hours) "falls off" of an attorney's caseload on the 366th day after the appointment was made.
The database will give us a warning as attorneys are approaching their caseload maximum, and we have the
ability to run a report at any time to determine the current caseload percentages.
We have begun participating in the LMOS pilot project in an effort to allow all systems in our region to share
monthly caseload data for attorneys. If we receive caseload data from other systems, we can then manually
add those numbers into our database to ensure that the caseload calculation remains accurate. Ultimately, we
believe that Standard 6 compliance can only be assured if it is centralized at the state level, so that all systems
are given data about cases their attorneys have taken elsewhere.
42. How many attorneys in your system maintain a private/retained or a partial trial-level criminal caseload? (For example, an attorney working on civil matters, youth defense, family legal matters, appellate cases, etc.)
None
1 - 9
10 - 49
50+
43. Who will be responsible for monitoring and auditing caseload calculations? Standard 6/7 Compliance
Attorney and IDSO Chief
Attorney
44. How will caseloads be locally monitored throughout the year? How will attorneys be notified when they have
reached their caseload cap?
The caseloads that attorneys carry in our system will be monitored through our internal database. To monitor the
caseloads that attorneys carry in other systems, our attorney manager will participate in the LMOS pilot project.
Attorneys will be notified via email if they have reached their caseload cap.
45. Will you have a process to gather information about an attorney’s caseload or assignments from other funding
units?
We are currently participating in the LMOS pilot project to obtain this data and hope that the pilot project will be
successful.
46. What action will be taken when the caseload cap is reached?
The attorney will be unable to take any more assignments until they are back within the cap.
Standard 7 - Qualification of Counsel
47. Eligibility for particular case assignments must be based on counsel’s ability,
training and experience. Are there sufficient attorneys in your funding unit to meet
the caseload standard? Please answer Yes or No
Yes No
48. Briefly describe your process for identifying counsel’s qualifications, including who will be responsible for
assessing counsel’s qualifications and noting any changes from last year.
I answered "no" for Question 47 because I believe the question is interconnected with Standard 6. If we look
just at our roster attorneys doing work in our system, my answer would be yes. But without a full picture of
what all attorneys are doing across the state, and whether we will have to limit some of our attorneys'
appointments due to their outside caseload, I cannot say yes to Question 47 with certainty.
For any new attorney wishing to join our roster, they are required to fill out an application which contains
questions that mirror the Standard 7 qualifications, so that we can immediately see where they are placed for
Standard 7 purposes. For current attorneys, the IDSO sent out a survey in FY24 to determine how many
attorneys meet the Standard 7 qualifications applicable to their current category. A majority of attorneys
already meet the Standard 7 requirements for their assigned category, and those who d id not meet the trials
requirement have been given an opportunity to provide reasons why they may meet the "significant record of
consistently high-quality criminal trial court representation" portion of the Standard. Those explanations have
been evaluated by the Chief Attorney of the IDSO, who is ultimately responsible for determining if a particular
attorney meets the requirements of Standard 7.
49. How will attorneys be notified of their qualification level? Email
50. What will be your appeal process if a private/roster attorney disagrees with their qualification level?
Category placements for attorneys who are applying to our roster are determined by a vote of the Criminal
Assignment Committee. For all currently active attorneys, if they did not agree with their current qualification
level, they can appeal to the Criminal Assignment Committee.
Review of Counsel
51. Please briefly describe your current process for reviewing counsel, including participants in the review process,
noting any changes from the prior year.
Every year, Oakland County will review approximately one-third of the total number of attorneys on its criminal
appointment list.
Step One: The IDSO will email the attorney to be reviewed and ask them to complete the self - assessment
report—which includes attaching a recent writing sample—and provide a list of their upcoming court
hearings for the next 30 days. Absent good cause, this information is due within three weeks of the
request.
Step Two: The Standard 6/7 Compliance Attorney will gather information about the attorney’s
performance via, among other things, in-court observation(s) and stakeholder surveys.
Step Three: The Standard 6/7 Compliance Attorney will meet with the attorney and review at least three of the
attorney’s recent case files. We do NOT review privileged material from an attorney's file.
Step Four: The Standard 6/7 Compliance Attorney will submit a report with their recommendations to the Chief
Attorney for consideration. The Standard 6/7 Compliance Attorney will also email a copy of their report to the
attorney. If the attorney disagrees with the Standard 6/7 Compliance Attorney report, they can submit a
response to the Chief Attorney. This response is due within 14 days unless the Chief Attorney grants an
extension.
Step Five: The Chief Attorney will follow, follow with modification, or reject the Standard 6/7 Compliance
Attorney recommendations.
If an attorney disagrees with the Chief Attorney’s assessment that their performance does not meet
expectations and/or they need to participate in a performance improvement plan, the attorney can request
review by the Criminal Assignment Committee (CAC). The CAC will review the Standard 6/7 Compliance
Attorney report, any report by the Chief Attorney, and any response from the attorney. Absent good cause,
materials prepared for the CAC must be emailed to the Chief Attorney 14 days before the CAC’s meeting date.
The CAC has the discretion to review the Chief Attorney’s assessment without holding a formal meeting if the
majority of the voting members elect to do so.
The Chief Attorney shall not vote on the review of the assessment, or on the decision whether a formal
meeting is necessary.
52. Who will be responsible for reviewing counsel? Standard 6/7 Compliance Attorney and
ultimately the Chief Attorney
53. How often will the reviews occur? At least every three years as required by
Standard 7
Determining Indigency, Contribution, Reimbursement
54. Will judges and/or court staff conduct all indigency screening in every proceeding?
Please answer Yes or No
Yes No
If no, who will screen for indigency?
Is this screener the Appointing Authority? Yes No
If the screener is not the Appointing Authority, does the Appointing Authority
oversee the screening process?
Yes No
Briefly describe your process for screening for indigency.
The Court will screen for indigency, and it is presumed that the Court will follow all applicable court rules and
MIDC standards when doing so.
What is the process for appealing a determination that a person does not qualify for appointed counsel?
The Indigent Defense Services Office would not be involved in any appeals, since we are not conducting the
indigency determinations. The IDSO presumes that a defendant would appeal to the next highest court.
55 Are you designating an Appointing Authority to conduct indigency screening for
purposes of MCR 6.005(B)?
Yes No
Will you seek contribution from partially indigent defendants? Yes No
56. In cases where contribution is appropriate, who is going to make request with the
court for contribution?
57. In cases where contribution is appropriate, what is your process for determining the amount that a person
should contribute during the pendency of the case to their defense?
58. What is your process for obtaining contribution?
59. What is the process for challenging a request for contribution?
60. Do your courts/judges order reimbursement for attorney fees at the conclusion of a
case?
Yes No
Attorney Compensation
61. The MIDC Standards set minimum hourly rates for roster attorneys accepting
assignments in adult criminal cases. Are ALL roster attorneys (not full time
employees of a public defender office) paid on an hourly basis?
Yes No
If no [hourly rates are not paid], please describe how attorneys are compensated (flat rate contract, event
based, shift coverage, etc). Please address the following:
Are attorneys compensated based on caseloads and does the compensation account for increases or
decreases in caseload size?
What other factors were considered in arriving at the payment?
Are attorneys able to seek extraordinary compensation?
How do attorneys seek reimbursement for case-related expenses?
How will your system demonstrate that the compensation is equivalent to the MIDC minimum hourly
rates? (type of invoicing, etc).
Most of the cases in our system will be paid at hourly rates. This includes all felony appointments, which is a
significant portion of our budget. For cases that are paid hourly, there is no cap on the number of hours that
attorneys may itemize. Of course, all invoices will be reviewed for reasonableness, and the Indigent Defense
Services Office may engage in conversations with attorneys who consistently exceed our generalized
expectation of how many hours should be spent on each type of case. There will be no need to seek
extraordinary fees on cases that are paid hourly, since there is no cap on the number of hours that can be
itemized, assuming all work is reasonably related to the needs of the case. Attorneys may seek reimbursement
for case related expenses within their voucher. Transcripts ordered by appointed attorneys are billed directly to
the IDSO and attorneys do not have to seek reimbursement for transcript requests.
Hourly Rates:
We plan a four-tiered hourly rate system which creates differentiation between multiple felony levels. This is
necessary to ensure that attorneys have an incentive to move up to increasingly higher levels of felony
representation, and to attract and retain the most qualified capital attorneys possible. We have seen a
decrease in the number of attorneys willing to take capital cases over the last several years. Some have
returned since we started paying those cases hourly this fiscal year, but we believe a rate increase is both
necessary and appropriate. Our capital rate is still lower than the rate paid to federal defenders, which is our
direct competition. Many of the experienced capital attorneys we have lost over the last few years have told us
that the pay in the federal system is a significant motivating factor. Also, the tri-county area has some of the
best paid lawyers in the State of Michigan, with the SBM Economics of Law practice study from 2023 finding
that the median rate for all attorneys in Oakland County is $325/hour. The median rate for all criminal law
practitioners in the state was $300/hour for felony cases and $250/hour for misdemeanor cases.
Capital Cases - $215/hour. This category is reserved for cases where the underlying offense is punishable by
life in prison. Habitual offender status is irrelevant for this category. This rate would also apply to any juveniles
who are entitled to resentencing based on receiving a sentence of life without parole under Parks/Poole or any
other cases that may be issued by the Court of Appeals or Supreme Court.
Capital Case 2nd Chair - in some of our more serious capital cases, where it would be appropriate to assign a
2nd chair, we would pay the 2nd chair attorney the rate of $160/hour, which is still in compliance with MIDC
Standard 8.
Category 2 Case - these are cases which would be considered "high-severity" felonies, where the underlying
charge is punishable by more than 5 years. We indend to pay these cases at the rate of
$160/hour. This differentiation will give our felony attorneys more incentive to move up from Category 3 into
Category 2.
Habitual 4th Life Maximum Cases - any case where the defendant is charged as a habitual 4th offender with a
life maximum will be paid at the rate of $160/hour. This ensures that any case where the maximum is increased
to life because of a habitual filing complies with the Standard 8 rate.
Category 3/4 Cases - these are cases which would be considered "low-severity" felonies, where the underlying
charge is punishable by 5 years or less. These cases would be paid at the rate of
$150/hour, unless the habitual 4th rate applies as stated above. The $150/hour rate would also apply to all
felony probation violation appointments, as well as the assigned adult treatment court attorney.
Misdemeanor cases - misdemeanor cases will be paid at the rate of $135/hour. This hourly rate would apply to
all pre-court preparation work done by the assigned house counsel, and any work done on misdemeanor
individual appointment cases. This rate would also apply to all District Court appeals.
Shift Rates:
In the following situations, we do intend to pay a shift rate. However, the shift rate is designed to approximate
the Standard 8 rate and is easier to use for those situations (like arraignment shifts, for example) where
attorneys are required to be present and on call for the entirety of a shift. For any shift rate, attorneys will be
paid hourly if their actual work time exceeds the expected shift hours.
District Court Arraignments
We provide an attorney each weekday in each of the four divisions of the 52nd District Court to handle all
scheduled and walk-in arraignments. This is a 6-hour shift (3 hour AM, 3 hour PM) where the attorney will be
paid $810, which equates to 6 hours at $135/hour. Attorneys will be strictly prohibited from double -billing for
this time, meaning that the attorney cannot get paid for an arraignment shift while also itemizing hourly work on
an individual appointment case during any "down time" in the arraignment shift. Attorneys choosing to work on
other cases during "down time" will be required to strictly separate their time and would then be paid hourly for
only that amount of time devoted to arraignment work, and separately for any work performed on other cases.
Oakland County Jail Arraignments
The same principles apply to OCJ arraignments. The weekday arraignment attorneys will be paid a
$810 shift rate, to equate to 6 hours of time at $135/hour. On the weekends, attorneys will be paid a shift rate of
$900, which equates to 6 hours of time at $150 per hour. On holidays, attorneys will be paid a shift rate of
$960, which equates to 6 hours of time at $160 per hour. We must provide higher shift payments for weekend
and holiday work, otherwise attorneys have no incentive to provide this service to our system.
Circuit Court Bench Warrants
We will pay a shift rate of $300, which equates to 2 hours of time at $150/hour.
District Court House Counsel
We will pay a shift rate of $405 for each half-day house counsel docket, which equates to 3 hours of time at the
rate of $135/hour. The caveats about double-billing applied to arraignment shifts also apply here. This is meant
to compensate the attorney for the time that they have to be actually present in court, as it is always possible
for district court dockets to have "add ons" that need to meet with the house counsel (generally people who did
not request appointed counsel after arraignment, but change their mind when they appear for the pretrial).
It is also very important to note that the district court shift rate only applies to the time spent in court handling
the docket. All pre-docket activities, including pre-court client communication and docket preparation, and all
work on cases where the attorney is continued on the file after the docket day, will be billed hourly at the rate
of $135/hour. For example, if an attorney spends 2 hours preparing for a house counsel docket by obtaining
discovery, contacting clients, etc., they would actually be paid $6 75 ($405 shift rate for court time, plus two
hours of itemized pre-court time at $135/hour).
62. All roster attorneys should be provided regular, periodic payments.
How often are attorney invoices processed and paid? Daily
In lengthy cases, is periodic billing and payment during the course
of representation allowed?
Yes No
Miscellaneous
Personnel
In the cost analysis, please provide detail about all personnel employed by the funding unit. This should
include DIRECT SERVICE PROVIDERS (Public Defender Chief, Deputy Chief, Assistant Defenders, and staff
of the defender office employed by the system) as well as ANCILLARY STAFF (court clerks, sheriff employees,
etc.)
Ancillary Staff
63. In limited circumstances, the MIDC can fund some other system staffing needs if required to implement one of
the MIDC standards. These requests are evaluated each year.
64. Do you have any ancillary staff? Please answer Yes or No. Yes No
If yes, what standard(s) or reporting needs do they
meet?
Ancillary staff ensure that we are able to fully comply with
Standards 2 and 4. Without these ancillary staff, our
attorneys would not have the ability to meet with clients
prior to their arraignment nor would they be able to obtain
the information necessary to allow them to adequately
conduct arraignments.
If yes, how are you tracking time for ancillary staff? Time is tracked using the County's Workday financial
software, with the Chief Attorney of the IDSO performing
bi-weekly approvals of all time charged to the MIDC grant
for ancillary staff to ensure accuracy.
65. For existing ancillary staff, are there any personnel positions/hours eliminated,
reduced or increased from the prior year? Please answer Yes or No.
Yes No
If yes, please explain in the cost analysis and attach documentation to
support the request for any increase.
66. Are any new ancillary staff positions or hours requested from the prior year? Please
answer Yes or No.
Yes No
If yes, please explain in the cost analysis and
attach documentation to support the new request.
Reimbursement Costs for Creating Plan
An indigent criminal defense system may submit to the MIDC an estimate of the cost of developing a plan and
cost analysis for implementing the plan under MCL 780.993(2). Please attach documentation of planning time
for FY27 if seeking reimbursement under this provision.
Are you requesting reimbursement of planning costs? Yes No
If yes, do you have receipts showing that non-funding unit employees have been
paid?
Yes No
What is the amount you are seeking in reimbursement?
Costs Associated with Data Collection
The MIDC shall fund reasonable costs associated with data required to be collected under the MIDC Act that is
over and above the local unit of government's data costs for other purposes pursuant to MCL 780.993 (10).
Are you requesting funding for costs associated with data
collection?
Yes No
If yes, please describe (cost for case management system, hiring personnel, etc.)
The Public Defender's Office is planning to move away from Defender Data and onto the ZLS platform for its
case management software. ZLS provides much more robust functionality than Defender Data and will allow the
attorneys and support staff to more efficiently manage their cases.
What is the amount you are seeking for this
funding? $
39,386.88
FY27 MIDC Grant
Application
Finance Committee – March 4, 2026
What is Indigent Defense?
Constitutional duty of government
The 6th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, and Article I, Section 20 of the
Michigan Constitution both say that a person accused of a crime has the right “to
have the assistance of counsel” for their defense.
If a person cannot afford to hire counsel themselves, it is the government’s
responsibility to provide it for them.
State Law
•Michigan Indigent Defense Commission (MIDC) creates state-wide
standards regarding the provision of indigent defense services.
•Indigent defense systems must comply with the standards, and they
receive grant funding from the state to do so.
•Our “system” includes the County-funded courts – 6 th Circuit and
52nd District.
Grant Process
Annually:
•We are required by state law to submit a Compliance Plan and
Cost Analysis to the MIDC.
•These are subject to further negotiation with the MIDC, and
certain items may be modified prior to final approval.
Grant Process
Assuming the MIDC approves our submission:
•State would give us a grant for FY27 of approximately $19.6 million.
•County is legally required to contribute its “local share” of $1,867,161.92.
•We submit quarterly compliance reports to the MIDC with a significant
amount of data and metrics.
•Any unused funds at the end of the year remain in our account and are
deducted from next year’s grant amount.
Our Indigent Defense System
•Managed by an office that is independent of the Judiciary.
(MIDC Standard 5)
•Hybrid Model:
•Services provided through a combination of in-house Public Defender’s
Office employees, and a roster of independent contractor attorneys.
•Goal for FY27 – 80/20 split between roster and PD Office.
Felony Caseload
[This is the number of post-arraignment cases handled by an appointed attorney]
FY23 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 FY24 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 FY25 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 FY26 Q1
0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
1400
1600
1018
1264
1335
1198
1333 1320
1493 1450
1243 1248
1322 1296
1168
Misdemeanor Caseload
[This is the number of post-arraignment cases handled by an appointed attorney]
FY23 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 FY24 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 FY25 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 FY26 Q1
0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
653
759 773
603 587
700
917
763
671
852
1057
954
895
Arraignment Caseload
[This is the number of clients represented by an appointed attorney at their arraignment. A client may have more than one case.]
Oct 24 Nov 24 Dec 24 Jan 25 Feb 25 Mar 25 Apr 25 May 25 Jun 25 Jul 25 Aug 25 Sep 25 Oct 25 Nov 25 Dec 25 Jan 26
0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
992
860 874
1010
876
1036
1107
1039 1014
1073 1048
995 997
797
930
820
MIDC Budget Category - Personnel
Salaries and Fringes: $6,642,000
•(10) positions in the Indigent Defense Services Office
•(17) Public Defender’s Office attorneys
•(12) Public Defender’s Office support staff
•(2) Pretrial & Justice Specialists
•(1) Sheriff’s Deputy
MIDC Budget Category – Roster Attorneys
Total: $12,123,020
Hourly rates paid to roster attorneys:
OAKLAND COUNTY RATES
Fiscal Year Misdemeanor Low Severity Felony High Severity Felony Capital (Life Offense)
FY23 Flat-Fee Flat-Fee Flat-Fee $120
FY24 $120 $132 $144 $192
FY25 $125 $140 $150 $200
FY26 $130 $145 $155 $210
FY27 $135 (3.8% increase)$150 (3.4% increase)$160 (3.2% increase)$215 (2.4% increase)
Felony Vouchers – Number Approved
Sep 24 Oct 24 Nov 24 Dec 24 Jan 25 Feb 25 Mar 25 Apr 25 May 25 Jun 25 Jul 25 Aug 25 Sep 25 Oct 25 Nov 25 Dec 25 Jan 26
0
100
200
300
400
500
18 22 14 18 9 8 9 19 11 8 21 10 19 30
10 12 15
100
79 86 99
115
76 76 79
109
123 118 115 119
190
61 73
88
436
383
192
250
299
189
254
223
309 311 307
250
270
502
206
193
237
Capital Felony High Severity Felony Low Severity Felony
Felony Vouchers – Hour Averages
Sep 24 Oct 24 Nov 24 Dec 24 Jan 25 Feb 25 Mar 25 Apr 25 May 25 Jun 25 Jul 25 Aug 25 Sep 25 Oct 25 Nov 25 Dec 25 Jan 26
55
50
45
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
45.34
48.64
25.41
16.77
27.60
16.59
23.32
48.79
22.09
39.22
35.11 34.71
47.24
33.82
22.39
30.40
33.63
13.85
16.64
11.68 11.73 12.05 14.10
10.39 10.88
17.93
12.24
15.02 14.29 15.01
12.23
15.28
11.95 11.32
9.45 9.16 9.2 8.51 9.07 9.27 9.48 9.11 8.97
10.39 9.97 9.34
12.5
8.62
10.45
9.1 9.29
Capital Felony High Severity Felony Low Severity Felony
MIDC Budget Category – Experts/Investigators
Total: $900,000
•Investigator rates standardized at $125/hour
•Expert rates can vary based on specialty, education, experience, etc.
Examples:Forensic Psychologist - $250/hour
Medical doctors - $350/hour and above
Cellphone forensics - $150 - $200/hour
Polygraphs - $600 - $1,000 flat rate
Experts and Investigators
FY22 FY23 FY24 FY25 FY26 (to
date)
0
50
100
150
200
250
45
77
142
202
77
34
74
84
118
51
Number of Requests
Experts Investigators FY22 FY23 FY24 FY25 FY26 (to
date)
$0
$100,000
$200,000
$300,000
$400,000
$500,000
$600,000
$141,483
$207,651
$426,366
$487,967
$308,522
Dollars Spent/Committed
MIDC Budget Category – Contracts
Total: $86,630 including:
•PD Office case management software (approx. $40k)
•Lexis Nexis legal research service (approx. $15k)
•Background check service for investigators (approx. $4k)
•Software for analysis and transcription of digital evidence (approx. $26k)
MIDC Budget Category – Training/Travel
Total: $307,076 including:
•Contract with OCBA for provision of mandatory annual continuing legal
education courses for attorneys ($175k)
•Training through CDAM, along with legal education dues to NAPD and the
SADO Criminal Defense Resource Center (approx. $105k)
•Attorney Bar Dues and employee mileage (approx. $15k)
*OCBA – Oakland County Bar Association | CDAM – Criminal Defense Attorneys of Michigan | NAPD – National Association for Public Defense | SADO – State Appellate Defender Office
MIDC Budget Category – Supplies/Services
Total: $800,000 – $1.4 million , including:
•Transcript fees ($100k)
•Office supplies/postage/copying/etc. (approx. $20k)
•Jail arraignment camera licenses (approx. $26k)
•Indirect costs ($600k - $1.2 million)