Meeting Time: January 17, 2024 at 1:30pm PST
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Where: NANNINI ADMINISTRATION BUILDING, SUITE 102 540 COURT STREET, ELKO, NEVADA 89801 ELKO, NV 89801

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Agenda Item

I.1) Discussion and consideration to approve addendums to the current Agreement for Public Defender Services to increase the contracted hourly rates for Jane Eberhardy Esq. and Kirsty Pickering, Esq. to be consistent with the hourly rates as determined by the Nevada Department of Indigent Defense Services Regulation R033-23 that went into effect December 15, 2023.    The regulation requires the hourly rates for private attorneys who do not currently have a contract through the county to provide indigent defense services, but are court appointed to provide indigent defense services to be the same as the prevailing rates set for the federal Criminal Justice Act (CJA) panel at the time services are or were provided.   The current contracted hourly rate for all cases for Ms. Eberhardy and Ms. Pickering is $150 per hour.   Ms. Eberhardy is requesting the contracted hourly rate to provide indigent services on or after January 1, 2024 to be retroactively increased to $172 per hour for non-capital cases and $220 per hour for capital cases consistent with DIDS Regulation 033-2023 and 2024 CJA panel rates.   Ms. Pickering is requesting the contracted hourly rate to provide indigent defense services rendered between December 15, 2023 and December 31, 2023 be retroactively increased to $163 per hour for non-capital cases ($210 per hour for capital cases) and the hourly rate for services provided on or after January 1, 2024 to be increased to $172 for non-capital cases and $220 for capital cases consistent with DIDS Regulation 033-2023 and 2023/2024 CJA panel rates.    Ms. Pickering has notified the Executive Director of the Nevada Department of Indigent Defense Services that she intends to terminate the current agreement will not accept any new cases until and unless the county agrees to increase the contracted hourly rates.