JACKSON, Mississippi (PNN) - March 2, 2015 - Hinds County Circuit Judge Jeff Weill says he is forbidding an assistant public defender from handling cases in his courtroom, prompting the Public Defender's Office to file a petition with the state Supreme Court to prevent the judge from acting on his plan to transfer her cases to private attorneys.
Weill said in a letter to Public Defender Michele Harris that his office has experienced an ongoing problem of unprofessional conduct by Assistant Public Defender Alison Kelly.
"Unfortunately, despite my making you aware of the behavior exhibited by Ms. Kelly on more than one occasion, the problems continue and have significantly worsened," he said.
Harris said Kelly is a senior assistant public defender who is a zealot for her clients and has a high percentage of winning cases. Harris said in court papers that Weill presented no specific misconduct.
The Public Defender's Office said in a petition filed Feb. 24 with the state Supreme Court that Weill stated that he would allow the public defender to transfer all of Kelly's cases to other assistant public defenders within 14 days or that he would transfer the cases to other counsel.
"An immediate stay is necessary to prevent such illegal and wrongful transfer of Hinds County Public Defender's Office clients," the petition said. In it, Harris and Kelly also filed 55 notices of recusal asking that Weill be removed from presiding over criminal cases handled by Kelly.
Harris said Monday that it would be inappropriate to discuss the case but that her office will continue to do its job and not be "deterred by personal animus."
Weill couldn't be reached for comment Monday, but he said in a letter to the Hinds County Board of Supervisors that he would continue to permit other assistant public defenders to serve as attorneys in pending cases and will allow them to assume Kelly's cases unless good cause is shown to preclude them.
In court papers, Harris said her office became aware in January that Weill had systematically increased the appointment of private counsel to most of the indigent defendants where no conflict existed; where no request had been made by the defendant for counsel other than the Public Defender's Office; and where her office had already been appointed.
"Further, at the time of appointment of private counsel, the court did not conduct any in-court hearing on this defendant to determine if good cause existed to depart from the statutory mandate that requires appointment of the public defender to all indigent defendants in the absence of conflict or the right to counsel being waived by such defendant," Harris and Kelly said in the court petition.
Harris and Kelly assert that the appointment of private counsel places an unnecessary burden on taxpayers.
Weill told supervisors it may cost more money, but he would be a good steward of county funds and appoint attorneys only when necessary.