ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) - An attorney representing poor defendants is urging Maryland’s highest court to move ahead with an order requiring lawyers to be provided for indigent defendants at initial bail hearings.
Michael Schatzow wrote to the court on Friday that while plaintiffs want implementation to occur immediately, he has suggested a timeline to help ensure implementation happens constructively.
He urges the court to have the new rules start in Baltimore on Feb. 3. The rest of the state would begin implementing them 60 days later.
The Court of Appeals has put a temporary hold on a trial judge’s order that attorneys be provided for poor defendants at initial bail hearings. The stay remains in effect until the judges are scheduled to consider the state’s request to review the case.
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