Louisiana Administrative Code › Title 22 - CORRECTIONS, CRIMINAL JUSTICE AND LAW ENFORCEMENT › Part XV - Public Defender Board › Chapter 21 - Performance Standards for Attorneys Representing Juveniles in Life without Parole Cases › Section XV-2101 - Purpose

Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 6, June 20, 2024
A. The standards
				are intended to encourage district public defenders, assistant public defenders
				and appointed counsel to perform to a high standard of representation and to
				promote professionalism in the representation of juveniles facing a possible
				sentence of life without parole or serving a sentence of life without parole.
				For the purpose of these standards, pursuant to
Roper v. Simmons,
				Graham v. Florida
and
Miller v. Alabama
, the term
juvenile
includes any individual who was under the age of 18
				at the time of the alleged offense.
B. The standards are also intended to alert
				defense counsel to courses of action that may be necessary, advisable, or
				appropriate, and thereby to assist attorneys in deciding upon the particular
				actions to be taken in each case to ensure that the client receives the best
				representation possible. The standards are further intended to provide a
				measure by which the performance of district public defenders, assistant public
				defenders and appointed counsel may be evaluated, including guidelines for
				proper documentation of files to demonstrate adherence to the standards, and to
				assist in training and supervising attorneys.
C. The language of these standards is
				general, implying flexibility of action that is appropriate to the situation.
				In those instances where a particular action is absolutely essential to
				providing quality representation, the standards use the word "shall." In those
				instances where a particular action is usually necessary to providing quality
				representation, the standards use the word "should." Even where the standards
				use the word "shall," in certain situations, the lawyers best informed
				professional judgment and discretion may indicate otherwise.
D. These standards are intended to adopt and
				apply the Louisiana Rules of Professional Conduct, Louisiana Public Defender
				Board (LPDB) Performance Standards for Criminal Defense Representation in
				Indigent Capital Cases, LPDB Capital Defense Guidelines, LPDB Trial Court
				Performance Standards for Delinquency Representation, the Campaign for the Fair
				Sentencing of Youth (CFSY) Trial Defense Guidelines for Representing a Child
				Client Facing a Possible Life Sentence, the guidelines for capital defense set
				out by the American Bar Association's
Guidelines for the Appointment
				and Performance of Defense Counsel in Death Penalty Cases
, its
				associated commentary and the
Supplementary Guidelines for the
				Mitigation Function of Defense Teams in Death Penalty Cases
. In these
				standards, the ABA guidelines have been adapted and applied to meet the
				specific needs and legal requirements applicable to lawyers representing
				juveniles facing a possible sentence of life without parole in Louisiana while
				seeking to give effect to the intention and spirit of the ABA
				guidelines.
AUTHORITY NOTE:
				  Promulgated in accordance with
				  R.S.
				  15:148.