Public Act 097-1003
 
HB5441 EnrolledLRB097 17719 MRW 62933 b


  
    AN ACT concerning criminal law.
  
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
 
represented in the General Assembly:
  
 
 
    Section 5. The State Appellate Defender Act is amended  by 
changing Section 10 as follows:
 



    (725 ILCS 105/10)  (from Ch. 38, par. 208-10)


    Sec. 10. Powers and duties of State Appellate Defender. 

    (a) The State Appellate Defender shall represent indigent 
persons on
appeal in criminal and delinquent minor proceedings, 
when appointed to do so by
a court under a Supreme Court Rule 
or law of this State. 

    (b) The State Appellate Defender shall submit a budget for 
the
approval of the State Appellate Defender Commission.

    (c) The State Appellate Defender may:


        (1) maintain a panel of private attorneys available to 
    serve as
counsel on a case basis;


        (2) establish programs, alone or in conjunction with 
    law schools,
for the purpose of utilizing volunteer law 
    students as legal assistants;


        (3) cooperate and consult with state agencies, 
    professional
associations, and other groups concerning the 
    causes of criminal
conduct, the rehabilitation and 
    correction of persons charged with and
convicted of crime, 
    the administration of criminal justice, and, in
counties of 
    less than 1,000,000 population, study, design, develop and

    implement model systems for the delivery of trial level 
    defender
services, and make an annual report to the General 
    Assembly;


        (4) hire investigators to provide investigative 
    services to appointed counsel and county
public defenders;


        (5) (Blank.) in cases in which a death sentence is an 
    authorized disposition,
provide trial counsel with legal 
    assistance and the assistance of expert witnesses, 
    investigators,
and mitigation specialists from funds 
    appropriated to the State Appellate
Defender specifically 
    for that
purpose by the General Assembly.  The Office of 
    State Appellate Defender shall
not be appointed to serve as 
    trial counsel in capital cases;

        (5.5) provide training to county public defenders; 
        (5.7) provide county public defenders with the 
    assistance of expert witnesses and investigators from 
    funds appropriated to the State Appellate Defender 
    specifically for that purpose by the General Assembly. The 
    Office of the State Appellate Defender shall not be 
    appointed to act as trial counsel; 
        (6)  develop a Juvenile Defender Resource Center to:
    (i)  
    study, design, develop, and implement model systems for the 
    delivery of trial level defender services for juveniles in 
    the justice system; (ii)  in cases in which a sentence of 
    incarceration or an adult sentence, or both, is an 
    authorized disposition, provide trial counsel with legal 
    advice and the assistance of expert witnesses and 
    investigators from funds appropriated to the Office of the 
    State Appellate Defender by the General Assembly 
    specifically for that purpose; (iii) develop and provide 
    training to public defenders on juvenile justice issues, 
    utilizing resources including the State and local bar 
    associations, the Illinois Public Defender Association, 
    law schools, the Midwest Juvenile Defender Center, and pro 
    bono efforts by law firms; and
    (iv)  make an annual report 
    to the General Assembly.

    Investigators employed by the Capital Trial Assistance 
Unit and Capital Post Conviction Unit of the State Appellate 
Defender shall be authorized to
inquire
through the Illinois 
State Police or local law enforcement with the Law
Enforcement

Agencies Data System (LEADS) under Section 2605-375 of the 
Civil Administrative
Code of Illinois to ascertain whether 
their potential witnesses have a criminal
background, 
including: (i) warrants; (ii) arrests; (iii) convictions; and 
(iv)
officer
safety information. This authorization applies 
only to information held on the
State
level and shall be used 
only to protect the personal safety of the
investigators. Any

information that is obtained through this inquiry may not be 
disclosed by the
investigators.

    (d) (Blank.) For each State fiscal year, the State 
Appellate Defender shall request a direct appropriation from 
the Capital Litigation Trust Fund for expenses incurred by the 
State Appellate Defender in providing assistance to trial 
attorneys under item (c)(5) of this Section and for expenses 
incurred by the State Appellate Defender in representing 
petitioners in capital cases in post-conviction proceedings 
under Article 122 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of 1963 and 
in relation to petitions filed under Section 2-1401 of the Code 
of Civil Procedure in relation to capital cases and for the 
representation of those petitioners by attorneys approved by or 
contracted with the State Appellate Defender and an 
appropriation to the State Treasurer for payments from the 
Trust Fund for the defense of cases in counties other than Cook 
County.  The State Appellate Defender may appear before the

General Assembly at other times during the State's fiscal year 
to request
supplemental appropriations from the Trust Fund to 
the State Treasurer.

    (e) The requirement for reporting to the General Assembly 
shall be
satisfied
by filing copies of the report with the 
Speaker, the Minority Leader and
the Clerk of the House of 
Representatives and the President, the Minority
Leader and the 
Secretary of the Senate and the Legislative Research
Unit, as 
required by Section 3.1 of the General Assembly Organization

Act and filing such additional copies with the State Government 
Report
Distribution Center for
the General Assembly as is 
required under paragraph (t) of Section 7 of the
State Library 
Act.

(Source: P.A. 95-376, eff. 1-1-08; 96-1148, eff. 7-21-10.)

 
 
    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon 
becoming law.