Right To Opd Counsel Under the Maryland Public Defender Act

• Jurisdiction: Maryland

V. Right to OPD counsel under the Maryland Public Defender Act

A. Right to counsel is broader under the Maryland Public Defender Act than under the Sixth Amendment

Because Md. Decl. of Rights art. 21 is interpreted in pari materia with the Sixth Amendment right to counsel, the Maryland Constitution provides no greater rights than the Sixth Amendment. Muhammad v. State, 177 Md. App. 188, 237 (2007) (citing Campbell, 385 Md. at 626 n.3). However, the Maryland Public Defender Act provides a right to counsel for indigent defendants greater than the rights provided by the Sixth Amendment. DeWolfe, 434 Md. at 427 (citing McCarter, 363 Md. at 713).

All counsel for indigent defendants are provided through the OPD. The OPD is a statewide office that was created in 1971. Under the Public Defender Act, the OPD includes in-house staff attorneys and public defender panel attorneys. Md. Code Ann., Crim. Proc. § 16-101. In Webster, 299 Md. at 603, the Court of Appeals held that the Public Defender Act contemplates representation in certain areas beyond the constitutional guarantees, e.g., counsel during a pre-indictment lineup, id. at 604, counsel on a motion for reduction or modification of sentence. See Flansburg, 345 Md. at 699; McCarter, 363 Md. at 15.

If the defendant is financially capable, the defendant may retain...