Source: https://www.clearinghouse.net/detail.php?id=10068&amp;search=
Timestamp: 2019-04-18 23:18:55+00:00

Document:
On December 17, 1999, Quitman County, Mississippi filed a lawsuit against the State of Mississippi under Article 3, Section 26 of the Mississippi Constitution, in the Circuit Court of Quitman County, Mississippi. The County claimed that the State of Mississippi's statutes requiring that the counties provide legal services for indigent defendants were unconstitutional. The County sought a declaratory judgment and an injunction to require the Mississippi State Legislature to establish a statewide public defenders office with state funding.
On July 10, 2000, the State filed a motion to dismiss the complaint alleging that it failed to state a claim and that the County lacked legal standing to bring the suit. On August 31, 2000, the Circuit Court (Judge Elzy Jonathan Smith, Jr.) denied the State's motion to dismiss, finding that the courts and the Legislature have concurrent responsibility for the State's compliance in this area. The State appealed.
On October 10, 2000, the Supreme Court of Mississippi granted the State's petition for interlocutory appeal. However, on October 31, 2001, the Supreme Court of Mississippi (Judge James W. Smith) affirmed, holding that the County did have standing to sue the State because "[t]he County has a colorable interest in the State's compliance with its duty to provide effective assistance of counsel to indigent defendants under Art. 3, § 26." State v. Quitman County, 807 So.2d 401, 410 (Miss. 2001). The Supreme Court also found that the allegations in the County's complaint stated a viable claim. The case was remanded to the Circuit Court for further proceedings. The State's motion for a rehearing of the case was denied on February 21, 2002.
On November 10, 2003, following a bench trial that was held from April 29, 2003, to May 6, 2003, the Circuit Court (Judge Ann H. Lamar) entered judgment in favor of the State. Judge Lamar concluded that "Quitman County had not met its burden of proving that the funding mechanism established by statute had led to systemic ineffective assistance of counsel in Quitman County and throughout the state." The County appealed and, on July 21, 2005, the Supreme Court of Mississippi (Judge James W. Smith) affirmed the ruling of the Circuit Court. Quitman County v. State, 910 So.2d 1032, 1037 (Miss. 2005).
Footnote 1 of State v. Quitman County, 807 So.2d 401, 402 (Miss. 2001), states that three similar suits were filed but held in abeyance pending the outcome of the first appeal to the Mississippi Supreme Court in the Quitman County case. These other cases are in our database and appear as: Jefferson County v. State (PD-MS-0002), Noxubee County v. State (PD-MS-0003), and Van Slyke v. State (PD-MS-0004). Because we have no docket or other court documents for Jefferson County v. State or Noxubee County v. State, we are unsure whether these cases were resumed following the Mississippi Supreme Court's authorization of a trial in the Quitman County case or whether they were otherwise resolved. The third case, Van Slyke v. State, was voluntarily dismissed in 2001 after the plaintiff resigned as public defender. Because we have no docket or other court documents in the Van Slyke case, we are unsure whether it was dismissed before or after the Mississippi Supreme Court's authorization of a trial in the Quitman County case.
We have no further information on Quitman County v. State.
Amicus Curiae Brief of Mississippi State Legislators in Support of the State of Mississippi, et. al.

References: Art. 3
 § 26
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