Public Defender

A public defender is a licensed attorney that represents indigent defendants.

The Clerk of Court uses guidelines set forth by the S.C. Court Administration to determine eligibility. Additionally, there is a $40.00 non-refundable application fee.

Typically, defendants are screened for a Public Defender after arrest. However, applications can be made at the York County Clerk of Court office or at the Municipal / Magistrate Court of jurisdiction

Every client receives two court dates upon release from jail. The first is an Initial Appearance date. It is usually about 6 weeks from your arrest date. This is the first time you will meet your public defender. By this time, your public defender will usually have discovered your case and be able to discuss it meaningfully. You will also decide at this meeting whether to have a preliminary hearing. This is not a court date, and you will not see a judge on this date. However, it is essential to show up so that you can meet your public defender, they can learn about you and your case, and they can talk to you about the preliminary hearing. Although you generally would not be bench-warranted for missing this first meeting (some exceptions exist), you can waive essential rights if you don’t appear. The second date is about 6 weeks after the initial appearance date. This is a bond returnable date. This meeting takes place during a court week, but you will not necessarily see a judge. If you miss this court date, you can and likely will be bench-warranted. So it is essential to be present, provide a documented excuse if you cannot appear for any reason (extended hospital stay, severe illness, incarceration, etc.), and reschedule your appearance as soon as possible if you miss this court date. This date ensures that clients out on bond are still showing up to court as required. It is also an opportunity for your attorney to provide any updates or offers they might have for you now. If your case is ready to go in front of a judge, you could do so that day, but generally, you will not see a judge at the bond returnable day.

At the beginning of each case, your public defender will automatically request discovery on your behalf. Discovery generally consists of any information the solicitor must turn over and could include incident reports, general sessions summaries, drug reports, videos, audio recordings, photos, or other things. We aim to receive the discovery by the initial appearance date so we can discuss it with you. If it is not in hand, then we may discuss discovery at a later meeting. Some discoveries may be received after initial discovery (i.e., drug reports take a while to be completed and are not usually finished within 6 weeks, so we don’t normally receive those by initial appearance). Discovery is an ongoing process.

The preliminary hearing is a hearing to determine probable cause. An officer will read the case's incident or summary report at the initial hearing. Your attorney will have the opportunity to ask the officer questions. However, the officer will likely not be an officer involved in your case; he simply reads the report and generally cannot answer any questions that are not answered in the report. You won’t testify. This is typically not an opportunity to present defenses or new evidence not contained within the report. After the report is read and any questions are answered, a magistrate judge will determine whether or not there was probable cause to arrest you. If he finds probable cause, your case will continue. If he finds no probable cause, the case will be dismissed, but the solicitor may still bring back the case if he or she decides to direct an indictment.

Many cases do not require a preliminary hearing because the standards are different from those of a trial. Your public defender will help you make this determination. A request for a preliminary hearing must be made on your initial appearance date, or it is waived.