Opinion ID: 2317113
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: Exclusion of Evidence Regarding Scott Brill's Alleged Prior Acts of Violence

Text: Moore also contends that the Circuit Court erred in precluding him from introducing evidence of Scott Brill's history of violence by cross-examining State's witnesses Crystal Brill and Danielle Ritter about Scott Brill's alleged assaults against them. The trial court excluded this evidence on the grounds that such evidence constituted other crimes evidence and was therefore inadmissible under Md. Rule 5-404(b). Moore contends that evidence of Brill's history of violence towards women made it more likely that Brillrather than Moore, who had no such historyhad killed Mason. We disagree. Crystal Brill testified on behalf of the State. On cross-examination, to show Brill's pattern of violence, Moore's counsel asked if her brother, Scott Brill, had assaulted her. The State objected on the ground that the evidence was inadmissible as evidence of other crimes. The trial court sustained the objection. Danielle Ritter also testified as a State's witness. On cross-examination, Moore's counsel asked Do you know if Scott Brilldoes Scott Brill ever get angry with you and hit you? The State again objected on the grounds that the evidence was inadmissible as evidence of other crimes. The trial court again sustained the objection. Moore argues the evidence was admissible because it was relevant, and not excluded by Md. Rule 5-404(b). Moore is correct that the State's other crimes objection was misplaced. The ban contained in Md. Rule 5-404(b) on [e]vidence of other crimes, wrongs, or acts ... to prove the character of a person in order to show action in conformity therewith applies only to the acts of the defendant, not those of other persons. See Sessoms v. State, 357 Md. 274, 284, 744 A.2d 9, 15 (2000). Md. Rule 5-404(b) was not a proper basis to exclude the evidence, assuming it was relevant. We do not agree with petitioner, however, that the evidence was admissible. Even if Brill had a propensity of violence towards women, it would not make it more likely, or less likely, that Brill committed the murder alone. It was always the State's theory of the case that Brill and Moore had acted together in killing Mason. The evidence was not relevant; thus, the trial court did not abuse its discretion in excluding it. Evidence that is not relevant is not admissible. See Md. Rule 5-402. JUDGMENT OF THE COURT OF SPECIAL APPEALS AFFIRMED. COSTS TO BE PAID BY PETITIONER. BELL, C.J., dissents. Dissenting Opinion by BELL, C.J. The issue in this case is the applicability of the holding in Ake v. Oklahoma, 470 U.S. 68, 105 S.Ct. 1087, 84 L.Ed.2d 53 (1985), regarding State funding of experts and expert-related services, to non-psychiatric experts and in the non-capital context, and, if it does apply to those situations, how the threshold determination is made and of what does it consist? After extensive review and discussion of the Supreme Court's opinion in Ake, the majority concludes that the right to State-funded defense experts is a constitutional right, Moore v. State, 390 Md. 343, 382-84, 889 A.2d 325, 347-49 (2005) grounded in due process. 390 Md. at 380-81, 889 A.2d at 346-47. The majority concludes that the principles enumerated in Ake apply in the non-capital context, 390 Md. at 363-64, 889 A.2d at 336-37, and in cases involving non-psychiatric experts, 390 Md. at 403-06, 889 A.2d at 361-62. As to the threshold showing required, it is, the majority holds, that there exists a reasonable probability[ [1] ] both that an expert would be of assistance to the defense and that denial of expert assistance would result in a fundamentally unfair trial. 390 Md. at 368, 889 A.2d at 339-40. Except for the level of the required showing, I am in general agreement on these points. Although concluding that there is a right to State-funded expert services, the majority accepts the Court of Special Appeals' holding that Moore's Ake rights  his entitlement to State-funded expert services  were satisfied. This is so, the majority says, because the Office of the Public Defender (OPD) will provide these services, so long as he is represented by an OPD attorney. 390 Md. at 374, 889 A.2d at 343. This conclusion is dictated, it submits, by State v. Miller, 337 Md. 71, 651 A.2d 845 (1994) and the Public Defender statute, Md.Code (1957, 2003 Repl.Vol., 2004 Cum. Supp.), Art. 27A. I disagree with this conclusion.
In Miller, the defendant Bernard Miller (Miller) was convicted of murder. His pro bono, private counsel filed an appeal and, to prepare for that appeal, requested that a transcript of the trial proceedings be furnished to him free of charge. He relied on Griffin v. Illinois, 351 U.S. 12, 18-19, 76 S.Ct. 585, 590-591, 100 L.Ed. 891, 898-899 (1956), which held that a state could not refuse to provide a transcript solely on the basis of the defendant's indigency. Not wanting the OPD involved in any way, Miller did not seek and, indeed, refused to request, representation by the OPD. His attorney also did not seek appointment as an assigned public defender to represent Miller on appeal with the supervision of the OPD and would have refused such an appointment. 337 Md. at 74, 651 A.2d at 846. Relying on Maryland Rule 1-325(b), [2] the Circuit Court for Howard County denied the request. The Court of Special Appeals reversed. Miller v. State, 98 Md.App. 634, 635 A.2d 1 (1993). That court construed Rule 1-325(b) as applicable to the exact situation that Miller faced; it held: where an indigent appellant who otherwise would qualify for representation by the Public Defender chooses to be represented by a qualified private attorney and that attorney elects to represent the appellant without fee of any kind or from any person, strictly on a pro bono basis, the Public Defender is obliged to provide the necessary transcript and ... pay the cost of the brief and other necessary documents as well. Id. at 645, 635 A.2d at 6. We granted the state's petition for certiorari. In this Court, the State argued that, while Miller was entitled to a free transcript, he must comply with Rule 1-325(b), Maryland's method of supplying indigent defendants with trial transcripts, believing it to be a reasonable exercise of an indigent's right to appeal. Miller, on the other hand, contended that Griffin mandated that he receive a free transcript and that Rule 1-325(b) denied him his Sixth Amendment right to assistance of counsel. This Court reversed the judgment of the Court of Special Appeals. Siding with the State, it held that an indigent defendant who had not sought, nor been refused, representation by the OPD was not entitled to a free State-funded trial transcript. Analyzing the applicability of Rule 1-325(b), the Court traced the Rule from its historical root, Ch. 1068 of the Acts of 1945, codified as Maryland Code (1939, 1947 Cum.Supp.), Art. 5, § 88A, which required the State to prepare a transcript for indigent appellants in capital criminal cases, to its amendment to comply with the Griffin mandate, Ch. 68 of the Acts of 1958, codified as Md.Code (1957, 1963 Cum.Supp.) Art. 5, § 15A, to the promulgation of its predecessor, Maryland Rule 883 b (1958). State v. Miller, 337 Md. 71, 77, 651 A.2d 845, 847 (1994). We also focused on the legislative history of the Public Defender statute and of Rule 1-325(b). The latter focus was primarily on language in the minutes of the Rules Committee, which added the requirement that the OPD refuse representation before providing a free transcript to indigent defendants so as to avoid abuse of the Rule by defendants attempting to do an end run around the Public Defender's Office. Rules Committee March 14-15, 1986, Minutes at 50. Those minutes reflected that the Committee questioned whether a rule requiring OPD refusal of representation as a condition for obtaining a free transcript would be constitutional, wondering particularly how such a rule would work when an indigent defendant had pro bono counsel or wanted to proceed pro se. The Chief Attorney of the Public Defender's Office responded: The proposed rule would not be an obstacle to the indigent appellant who wants to proceed with pro bono counsel. It has been the practice of the Public Defender's Office to cooperate with individual attorneys, law schools and other organizations willing to provide pro bono representation to indigent appellants. This cooperative arrangement has not presented problems in the past. Memorandum from Dennis M. Henderson, Chief Attorney, Appellate Division, Office of the Public Defender, to Julia M. Freit, Reporter, Rules Committee, p. 6 (June 10, 1986). Unlike the Court of Special Appeals, which had construed the cooperation described in the memorandum to mean that the OPD not object to providing a free transcript to indigent defendants who wished to proceed with pro bono counsel, 98 Md.App. at 645, 635 A.2d at 6, this Court interpreted the words, cooperative arrangement, to mean that the OPD would work together with pro bono counsel and make arrangements for the provision of the free transcript. 337 Md. 71, 80-81, 651 A.2d 845, 849. We viewed Rule 1-325(b) as extending the framework of Art. 27A by identifying the OPD as the gatekeeper against abuse of State resources, 337 Md. 71, 81, 651 A.2d 845, 849-850, and as furthering the legislative goals of effective indigent representation by setting up the OPD as an evaluator of attorney competency: The instant case demonstrates vividly how the legislative will can be frustrated by an indigent who for unspecified reasons has adamantly refused to cooperate in any way with the Public Defender. Md. Rule 1-325(b) expressly prevents such non-cooperation, which could lead to an appeal ineffectively conducted and a further expenditure of funds for a second appeal. 337 Md. at 81-82, 651 A.2d at 850. Thus, this Court concluded, Rule 1-325(b) required, as a condition for receiving a free trial transcript, that an indigent defendant apply for representation from the OPD. Id. at 82, 651 A.2d at 850. That condition did not constitute a difference based on his economic status, noting that it depends on [Miller's] willingness to cooperate and follow the reasonable procedures set forth in Art. 27A and the Maryland Rules. But for his intransigence, this system would work, and Miller would receive a free transcript. Id. at 85, 651 A.2d at 851. Therefore, Miller was not receiving an unequal type of appeal. There was no Griffin violation. The Court rejected Miller's Sixth Amendment argument. It reasoned that indigent defendants did not have an absolute right to counsel of choice; the Sixth Amendment provided for the right to effective representation, and not the right to representation by a particular attorney. Wheat v. United States, 486 U.S. 153, 159, 108 S.Ct. 1692, 1697, 100 L.Ed.2d 140, 148 (1988). This Court stated: Failure to provide a free transcript to the indigent appellant cannot interfere with the right to choice of counsel where no such absolute right exists. In the absence of such a right to choice of counsel, there is no constitutional violation when the State requires that an indigent defendant avail himself of the services of the Office of the Public Defender in order to obtain a free transcript. The State has set up a system by which all indigent appellants are provided effective assistance of counsel, whether represented by the Public Defender's Office or by a private attorney under the supervision of that office. Miller cannot pick and choose which of the State-provided services he wishes to receive; he must accept the available resources as provided under Art. 27A and the Maryland Rules. Miller has not been denied his right to assistance of counsel, because he may apply to the Office of the Public Defender and receive effective representation. The Public Defender system is Maryland's `alternative solution' as described in Griffin and Bounds [v. Smith, 430 U.S. 817, 97 S.Ct. 1491, 52 L.Ed.2d 72 (1977).] Public Defender representation, like a transcript, is part of the `package' provided by the State, and requiring Miller to comply with reasonable State procedures in no way infringes upon his right to assistance of counsel. Miller, 337 Md. at 87-88, 651 A.2d at 853. In the case sub judice, the majority extends Miller to the broad spectrum of ancillary services, not heretofore addressed, on the basis of attorney status and the non-severability of OPD representation and other services, and nothing more. 390 Md. at 378, 889 A.2d at 345-46. It does so by applying, notwithstanding the absence of a Rule comparable to Rule 1-325(b), the same analysis to how Art. 27A meshes Ake's holding with respect to State provision of ancillary services as it applied in Miller with regard to trial transcripts. To achieve the result it does, the majority relies heavily on the fact that the Public Defender statute provides that it is the duty of the OPD to supply legal representation and other related services to the indigent defendants. Having declared it to be the policy of the State of Maryland to provide for the realization of the constitutional guarantees of counsel in the representation of indigents, including related necessary services and facilities, in criminal and juvenile proceedings within the State, and to assure effective assistance and continuity of counsel to indigent accused taken into custody and indigent defendants in criminal and juvenile proceedings before the courts of the State of Maryland, Art. 27A, § 1 authorize[s] the Office of Public Defender to administer and assure enforcement of the provisions of this article in accordance with its terms. Section 2(f), [3] in defining indigent, delineates the perimeters of the services to be provided by the OPD: the full payment of an attorney and all other necessary expenses of legal representation, to include [e]xpenses, i.e., all costs incident to investigation, other pretrial preparation, trial and appeal of a person accused of a serious crime. Section 2(g). Section 4(a) provides: (a) It shall be the primary duty of the Public Defender to provide legal representation for any indigent defendant eligible for services under this article. Legal representation may be provided by the Public Defender, or, subject to the supervision of the Public Defender, by his deputy, by district public defenders, by assistant public defenders, or by panel attorneys as hereinafter provided for. Whether a defendant is eligible for OPD supplied representation and services depends on the defendant's need, § 7(a), to be determined by the OPD after investigation, § 7(b), [4] and the value of any representation or services provided becomes a lien on real or personal property of the defendant or to which the defendant acquires an interest or title. Section 7(d). Despite the absence of a rule pertaining to the procedure for obtaining ancillary services comparable to Rule 1-325(b), a fact that the majority readily concedes, but believes to be answered by the severability question, see 390 Md. at 379, 889 A.2d at 346, secure in the belief that Miller is instructive on the question of whether the State may condition the receipt of constitutionally mandated services on representation by the O.P.D, the issue it perceives to be presented, 390 Md. at 375, 889 A.2d at 344, the majority concludes that the ancillary services required to be provided by the OPD are non-severable from the representation it is required to provide. 390 Md. at 374-75, 889 A.2d at 343-44. In so doing, it adopts the rationale of the Court of Special Appeals, which it quoted, with approval, as follows: We agree with those states which hold that the dual services provided by the public defender are not severable. The language of Art 27A, § 2, defining indigent as a person unable to `provide for the full payment of an attorney and all necessary expenses of legal representation,' is a unified enactment and does not contemplate that a defendant be indigent for purposes of `all necessary expenses' and yet be able to retain private counsel. See Morton [ v. Commonwealth, ] 817 S.W.2d [218,] 220 [(Ky. 1991)], We adopt Kentucky's position, that `under this definition and the general tenor of the entire Act, inability to obtain counsel and inability to obtain necessary services go hand in hand.' Thus any funding for the necessary services associated with representation are conditioned upon representation by the Public Defender. Id. at 373-74, 889 A.2d at 343, quoting Moore, 154 Md.App. at 592, 841 A.2d at 39. And, like the intermediate appellate court, the majority holds that the O.P.D. is not required to pay for expert assistance or other ancillary services if the defendant is not represented by the O.P.D. (or a panel attorney assigned by the O.P.D.). Id. at 374, 889 A.2d at 343. [5] Thus, while acknowledging Ake's requirement of a threshold showing of indigence and a demonstration of the defense's significant need for the expert, assuming the latter, it opines that state-funded expert assistance was available to [Moore] so long as he complied with the procedural requirement that he apply for legal representation through the O.P.D. Imposing this requirement on Moore did not violate his constitutional rights. 390 Md. at 378, 889 A.2d at 346. The majority is wrong. First, it is important that, in Miller, there was a Rule that set out precisely and explicitly the process for obtaining a trial transcript for appeal purposes. That it had its genesis in a statute, predating Griffin and the Public Defender statute, pertaining to, and only to, the State's obligation to indigent defendants with respect to trial transcripts, first in capital cases and later, after Griffin, in all criminal appeals, and that the requirements were retained after the Public Defender statute was enacted further underscore its significance. Indeed, because Rule 1-325(b) directly addressed the State's and the OPD's role when a defendant is indigent and, therefore, unable to afford a trial transcript, specifying expressly when the costs will be subsidized, in any case in which (1) the Public Defender's Office is authorized by these rules or other law to represent a party, (2) the Public Defender has declined representation of the party, and (3) the party is unable by reason of poverty to pay those costs, the Miller result fits easily into a statutory construction analysis. Without a comparable statute regulating the State's obligation to provide expert services to indigent defendants, interpreting Art. 27A consistently with Miller is, at best, a stretch.
Second, the majority's non-severability holding does not withstand scrutiny. Critical to its soundness is Morton v. Commonwealth, 817 S.W.2d 218, 220 (Ky.1991), whose interpretation of Kentucky's public defender statute, and the rationale therefor, we adopted. Similar to this case, the defendant in Morton, who also was charged with murder and otherwise was indigent, retained private counsel, paying him a nominal fee of $ 100. Similar to Maryland's Public Defender statute, Kentucky's, KY. REV. STAT. § 31.100, et. seq., declares the State policy with respect to indigent representation: (1) A needy person who is being detained by a law enforcement officer, on suspicion of having committed, or who is under formal charge of having committed, or is being detained under a conviction of, a serious crime, or who is accused of having committed a public or status offense or who has been committed to the Department of Juvenile Justice or Cabinet for Health and Family Services for having committed a public or status offense as those are defined by KRS 610.010(1)(a), (b), (c), or (d) or 630.020(2) is entitled: (a) To be represented by an attorney to the same extent as a person having his own counsel is so entitled; and (b) To be provided with the necessary services and facilities of representation including investigation and other preparation. The courts in which the defendant is tried shall waive all costs. KY. REV. STAT. § 31.110(1)(a) and (b). Also, as in, and similar to, Maryland's statute, it prescribed who was deemed to be indigent. See KY. REV. STAT. § 31.100(3)(a), defining `[n]eedy person' or `indigent person' as (a) A person eighteen (18) years of age or older or emancipated minor under the age of eighteen (18) who, at the time his need is determined, is unable to provide for the payment of an attorney and all other necessary expenses of representation. To be sure, the Supreme Court of Kentucky construed this statute to set up a unified scheme, in which the services to be provided by the public defender were non-severable: A more difficult question is whether the trial court erred in its determination that a defendant who seeks and obtains the benefits of KRS 31.110(1)(b) may not be represented by retained counsel who declares his intention to continue on a pro bono basis. Appellant correctly observes that the statute contains no express prohibition against having the Commonwealth provide `the necessary services and facilities of representation' when the defendant has obtained his own counsel. Be this as it may, in our view, KRS 31.100, et. seq., is a unified enactment which contemplates the necessity of a comprehensive determination whether a defendant qualifies for the benefits provided. For it to be determined that he does, he must be without the independent means to obtain counsel. The statute surely does not contemplate that a defendant would be indigent for purposes of KRS 31.110(1)(b), but still able to hire an attorney. If such were the case, rarely would any defendant step forward to pay investigative costs and other services necessary for his representation. Indeed, in KRS 31.100(3) `needy person' or `indigent person' is defined as `a person who at the time his need is determined is unable to provide for the payment of an attorney and all other necessary expenses of representation.' Under this definition and the general tenor of the entire Act, inability to obtain counsel and inability to obtain necessary services must go hand-in-hand. Morton, 817 S.W.2d at 220. It did not conclude, however, that the non-severability was absolute or applied in all circumstances. Immediately following the quoted passage, the court considered another scenario that could arise under the statute and conceded that, in an appropriate case, a different result would obtain: In an unusual case, however, it may be that an indigent defendant can obtain counsel which is truly pro bono; counsel who has neither sought nor obtained any fee or the promise thereof for legal services rendered or promised. In such a circumstance, the dual benefits provided by the Act would indeed be severed. The defendant would be indigent for purposes of necessary services and facilities, but otherwise be able to provide his own counsel without cost to himself. When such a circumstance produces the severance between ability to obtain counsel and need for other necessary expenses, the statute may be interpreted to permit the trial court to grant indigency status for purposes of KRS 31.110(1)(b) only. 817 S.W.2d at 220-221 (emphasis added). Thus, although Morton does support the majority's holding, it also contradicts it. Because it recognizes that there may be circumstances, such as representation by a pro bono attorney, under which a defendant could obtain State-funded expert services without the involvement of the public defender, it does not support the notion, advanced by the majority, that the OPD is, and always must be, the gatekeeper of State funds and defense attorney competence. In fact, Morton undermines the viability of that concept under this statutory scheme. The gatekeeper function attributed to the OPD is not supported by the statute establishing it. The majority is correct, see 390 Md. at 375-76, 889 A.2d at 344, indeed, it is undisputed, that Maryland has established a State-wide public defender system to discharge its responsibility to provide constitutionally guaranteed legal representation, investigative services, and expert assistance to indigent defendants. Art. 27A, § 1 does place the duty on the OPD to administer and assure enforcement of the provision[s] of [Article 27A], in accordance with its terms. Nothing in Art. 27A, however, explicitly, or inferentially, requires that services funded by the State may only be obtained when the OPD either represents the defendant needing them or supervises the attorney representing that defendant. I do not read the words, administer and assure enforcement of the provision of [Article 27A], in accordance with its terms, as broadly as the majority apparently does. Nor do I believe that the result reached by the majority can be justified by the statement of the goal, directed to the State itself, to provide for the realization of the constitutional guarantees of counsel.[ [6] ] Moreover, I disagree that legal representation and the ancillary services required for an adequate defense are non-severable. In this belief, I am far from alone. Courts from other jurisdictions have held that a defendant is entitled to State-funded expert services in circumstances comparable to the petitioner's, as well as when a defendant is being represented pro bono. See, e.g., Ex parte Sanders, 612 So.2d 1199, 1201 (Ala.1993) (holding indigent defendant has right to public funds to hire expert although represented by counsel retained by family); Dubose v. State, 662 So.2d 1189, 1191 (Ala.1995) (following Sanders ); People v. Worthy, 109 Cal.App.3d 514, 167 Cal.Rptr. 402, 406 (1980) (concluding that, upon a proper showing of necessity, trial court must provide an indigent defendant expert services, without regard to whether his counsel is appointed or pro bono ); People v. Evans, 271 Ill.App.3d 495, 208 Ill.Dec. 42, 648 N.E.2d 964, 969 (1995) (concluding that indigent defendant entitled to expert witness funding although represented by private law firm where services provided on pro bono basis); English v. Missildine, 311 N.W.2d 292, 293-94 (Iowa 1981) (holding Sixth Amendment authority for furnishing investigative services at public expense without regard to whether indigent represented by private counsel); State v. Jones, 707 So.2d 975, 977-78 (La.1998) (holding, although indigent defendant was represented by counsel retained by defendant's father, he was eligible for state-funded necessary services); State v. Seifert, 423 N.W.2d 368, 371 (Minn.1988) (holding that an indigent pro se criminal appellant must be given access to a trial transcript on a limited basis for the purpose of perfecting his appeal, even though the public defender is not acting as his appellate counsel); State v. Huchting, 927 S.W.2d 411, 419 (Mo.Ct.App.1996) (noting retention of private counsel does not cause a defendant to forfeit his eligibility for state assistance in paying for expert witness or investigative expenses); State v. Manning, 234 N.J.Super. 147, 560 A.2d 693, 698-99 (1989) (holding indigent defendant could not be denied state-funded expert services because he was represented by private counsel, whether counsel was pro bono or paid by third party); Widdis v. Second Jud. Dist. Ct., 114 Nev. 1224, 968 P.2d 1165, 1168 (Nev.1998) (holding criminal defendant with private counsel constitutionally entitled to reasonable defense services at public expense based on defendant's showing of indigency and need for the services); State v. Burns, 4 P.3d 795, 800-02 (Utah 2000) (holding statutory right to publicly funded expert assistance under statute could not be conditioned upon accepting court-appointed counsel in lieu of private counsel retained at father's expense); State ex rel. Rojas v. Wilkes, 193 W.Va. 206, 455 S.E.2d 575, 577 (1995) (holding that funds with which defendant's family retained private counsel irrelevant to defendant's right as indigent to have necessary expert assistance provided at state's expense). Because it involved private counsel, albeit provided by a third person and not by the defendant, English v. Missildine is on point and instructive. There, the question presented was whether an indigent defendant, charged with theft, had the right to employ an expert and take depositions, the necessity for which was not at issue, at public expense when he was represented by counsel supplied by his mother. An Iowa statute authorizing fees for court-appointed attorneys covered such expenses. Iowa Code Ann. § 815.7 (2004). [7] Conceding the defendant's entitlement were he represented by a court-appointed attorney, the State opposed the defendant's petition because he was represented by private counsel. 311 N.W.2d at 293. In support, it made arguments reminiscent of the arguments made, and adopted, in this case: the defendant's only remedy was to accept court appointed or assigned counsel; refusing State-funding of the services did not constitute a constitutional violation since they could be obtained through an alternative State-sanctioned procedure, 311 N.W.2d at 294, and to allow funding in cases other than those in which counsel was appointed would be to give an indigent defendant a right he does not have, to retain counsel of choice. Id. The Supreme Court of Iowa sided with the indigent defendant. Concluding that authority for the services requested by [the indigent defendant] exists under his sixth amendment right to effective representation of counsel, id. at 293, and acknowledging that third party funded representation does not by itself undermine a defendant's indigency, citing Schmidt v. Uhlenhopp, 258 Iowa 771, 140 N.W.2d 118 (1966), it held: For indigents the right to effective counsel includes the right to public payment for reasonably necessary investigative services ... [t]he Constitution does not limit this right to defendants represented by appointed or assigned counsel. The determinative question is the defendant's indigency. When his indigent status is established the `defendant is constitutionally entitled to those defense services for which he demonstrates a need.' 311 N.W.2d at 293-294, citing People v. Worthy, 109 Cal.App.3d 514, 520, 167 Cal. Rptr. 402, 406 (1980). The court responded to, and rejected, the State's constitutional argument, reasoning: The State's constitutional argument begs the question. If, as we have held, the sixth amendment provides authority for furnishing investigative services to indigents at public expense without regard to whether the indigent is represented by counsel at public expense, the fact that indigents represented by counsel at public expense have the same right is not material. It would be strange if the Constitution required the government to furnish both counsel and investigative services in cases where the indigent needs and requests public payment for only investigative services. The State's theory would impose an unreasonable and unnecessary additional burden on the public treasury. Moreover, we do not share the State's concern about an indigent's right to be represented by counsel of his choice when the attorney is not paid at public expense. We have recognized that an indigent does not have this right of choice when counsel is paid from public funds .... However, no reason exists for depriving an indigent of the same right of choice as a person of means when the indigent is able to obtain private counsel without public expense. 311 N.W.2d at 294 (citation omitted). State v. Burns, supra , is similarly instructive. In that case, the indigent defendants were represented by private counsel, paid for by a family member. 4 P.3d at 800-802. Being unable to afford the cost of a concededly necessary medical expert witness, they sought to have that expense paid by the State. Id. at 796-97. Denying the request, the trial court opined: the [defendants] would have to make a decision as to whether to retain their counsel, paid for by [a defendant's] father, or if they were ultimately found to be indigent so as to qualify for funds for expert witnesses, the court would appoint L[egal] D[efender] A[ssociation] counsel and then the funds for expert assistance would be available. 4 P.3d at 797. The defendants appealed, arguing that it was error for the trial court to force that choice. 4 P.3d at 799. To resolve the issue, the Supreme Court of Utah interpreted, and harmonized, two provisions of Utah Code Ann. §§ 77-32-101 to -704 (1999), the Indigent Defense Act (Act): § 77-32-301, [8] outlining the minimum standards required for indigent defense, and § 77-32-6 (1990), [9] designating the options for meeting those standards. It concluded: [T]his section cannot be read to mandate the packaging of indigent assistance with LDA representation. To suggest, as the State does, that only those indigents represented by LDA are eligible for the minimum services would be a direct contradiction of the plain meaning of section 77-32-1 as well as the legislative purpose of providing indigents with the basic tools of defense. In fact, contrary to its argument, the State indicated at oral argument that an indigent defendant proceeding pro se who has declined standby counsel from the LDA would be able to acquire funding for expert assistance. Furthermore, rule 15 of the Utah Rules of Criminal Procedure provides that `[u]pon showing that a defendant is financially unable to pay the fees of an expert whose services are necessary for adequate defense, the witness fee shall be paid as if he were called on behalf of the prosecution.' There is no indication in this rule that a defendant must be represented by LDA to qualify for this assistance. Instead, the only prerequisites for eligibility are financial inability to pay and necessity for an adequate defense. It follows, therefore, that the only requirements for receiving public assistance for expert witnesses are proof of necessity and establishment of indigence. It is up to the court, not the LDA, to determine indigency and therefore eligibility. While who is paying for a defendant's attorney may be a factor in the determination of indigency, it is not the determinative factor, and in this case, the court did not allow Burns to have her hearing on indigence without condition of LDA representation. Therefore, the trial court erred in failing to determine whether Burns was indigent and in holding instead that LDA representation was a prerequisite to providing the statutorily required minimum standards for an indigent defense. As a result, even though Burns's father was paying for her defense attorney, Burns was entitled to a hearing for a determination of whether she was indigent without the condition that she accept LDA counsel. 4 P.3d at 801-802. To like effect, see In re: Cannady, supra, 126 N.J. 486, 600 A.2d 459, 462. In that case, the court rejected the argument that the New Jersey Public Defender Act precluded the funding of ancillary services for indigent defendants represented by private counsel, holding instead: New Jersey's policy is to provide counsel for all indigent defendants, not just for indigents represented by the OPD. The Act's language states that eligibility for OPD services includes not just a defendant's inability to hire private counsel but also a defendant's ability to pay for all other necessary expenses of representation. Nowhere in the Act is there a requirement that a defendant obtain legal services from the OPD before he or she may obtain ancillary services from it. The Legislature intended that a defendant's right to obtain necessary ancillary services for his or her defense depends on the defendant's indigence and not on whether the defendant is represented by outside counsel. Id. The court, nevertheless, recognizing the need for and [i]n order to maintain a unitary, centralized Public Defender System, developed a framework to insure that the OPD maintains the requisite control over services provided to defendants represented by outside counsel, the same as it does over services it provides to its own clients. Id. at 462-464. In particular, it made clear that [i]f, [applying the factors it identified], the OPD decides to provide services for a defendant, it is the OPD who shall determine how much money it should expend on such services. Id. at 464, citing the Public Defender Statute and noting that it does not require that it write a blank check for privately-represented defendants. See also Ex Parte Sanders, 612 So.2d at 1201 (holding, in a case where private counsel was secured for an indigent man by a family member, that [t]he simple fact that the defendant's family, with no legal duty to do so, retained counsel for the defendant, does not bar the defendant from obtaining the funds for expert assistance when the defendant shows that the expert assistance is necessary).
When explaining its application of the Miller holding to the case sub judice, the majority states that defendants properly may be put to the choice of counsel and the ancillary services required to be supplied at State expense to ensure an effective defense, because the constitution does not bar the State of Maryland from doing so. 390 Md. at 379, 889 A.2d at 346. I do not agree. The Sixth Amendment of the United States Constitution [10] guarantees that, [i]n all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right ... to have the Assistance of Counsel for his defence, Wheat v. United States, 486 U.S. 153, 158, 108 S.Ct. 1692, 1694, 100 L.Ed.2d 140, 148 (1988), the purpose of which is to ensure fairness in the criminal justice process. United States v. Morrison, 449 U.S. 361, 364, 101 S.Ct. 665, 667, 66 L.Ed.2d 564, 567 (1981). Pursuant to that Amendment, the right to counsel is secured by the appointment of counsel, as necessary. Gideon v. Wainwright, 372 U.S. 335, 344, 83 S.Ct. 792, 796, 9 L.Ed.2d 799, 805 (1963). Inherent in the constitutional right to counsel is the right to be represented by counsel of choice. Wheat, 486 U.S. at 159, 108 S.Ct. at 1697, 100 L.Ed.2d at 148-149. That right of choice is not limited to persons with means. While, to be sure, an indigent defendant's right of choice is significantly restricted, Caplin & Drysdale, Chartered v. United States, 491 U.S. 617, 624, 109 S.Ct. 2646, 2652, 105 L.Ed.2d 528, 541 (1989) (The Amendment guarantees defendants in criminal cases the right to adequate representation, but those who do not have the means to hire their own lawyers have no cognizable complaint so long as they are adequately represented by attorneys appointed by the courts.); Wheat, 486 U.S. at 159, 108 S.Ct. at 1697, 100 L.Ed.2d at 149 ([A] defendant may not insist on representation by an attorney he cannot afford.); Fowlkes v. State, 311 Md. 586, 605, 536 A.2d 1149, 1159 (1988) (for indigent defendants unable to retain private counsel, the right to counsel is but a right to effective legal representation; it is not a right to representation by any particular attorney); State v. DeLuna, 110 Ariz. 497, 520 P.2d 1121, 1124 (1974); State v. Harper, 381 So.2d 468, 470 (La. 1980), the fact of indigency is not dispositive; [t]he Sixth Amendment guarantees a defendant the right to be represented by an otherwise qualified attorney whom that defendant can afford to hire, or who is willing to represent the defendant even though he is without funds. Caplin & Drysdale, Chartered v. United States, 491 U.S. at 624-625, 109 S.Ct. at 2652, 105 L.Ed.2d at 541. The Supreme Court has recognized that the Sixth Amendment right to counsel of choice, in certain situations, is qualified, that the essential aim of the Amendment is to guarantee an effective advocate for each criminal defendant rather than to ensure that a defendant will inexorably be represented by the lawyer whom he prefers. Wheat, 486 U.S. at 159, 108 S.Ct. at 1697, 100 L.Ed.2d at 148. See also Morris v. Slappy, 461 U.S. 1, 13-14, 103 S.Ct. 1610, 1617-1618, 75 L.Ed.2d 610, 620-621 (1983). Thus, The Sixth Amendment right to choose one's own counsel is circumscribed in several important respects. Regardless of his persuasive powers, an advocate who is not a member of the bar may not represent clients (other than himself) in court. Similarly, a defendant may not insist on representation by an attorney he cannot afford or who for other reasons declines to represent the defendant. Nor may a defendant insist on the counsel of an attorney who has a previous or ongoing relationship with an opposing party, even when the opposing party is the Government. Wheat, 486 U.S. at 159, 108 S.Ct. at 1697, 100 L.Ed.2d at 148-149. Moreover, notwithstanding that the right to counsel ordinarily encompasses a right to retain counsel of one's choice, the latter right does not trump, and will not be permitted to frustrate, the orderly administration of criminal justice. See Maynard v. Meachum, 545 F.2d 273, 278 (1st Cir.1976); Kates v. Nelson, 435 F.2d 1085, 1088-1089 (9th Cir. 1970); United States ex rel. Davis v. McMann, 386 F.2d 611, 618-619 (2d Cir. 1967), cert. denied, 390 U.S. 958, 88 S.Ct. 1049, 19 L.Ed.2d 1153 (1968); United States v. Bentvena, 319 F.2d 916, 936 (2d Cir.1963), cert. denied, 375 U.S. 940, 84 S.Ct. 345, 11 L.Ed.2d 271 (1963); State v. Harper, 381 So.2d at 470-471; Rahhal v. State, 52 Wis.2d 144, 187 N.W.2d 800, 803 (1971). Wheat is exemplary of the latter restriction. There, two court days before his trial was to commence, Mark Wheat (Wheat), one of the many co-defendants on trial for charges arising out of an alleged broad-based drug ring, moved to substitute the counsel for two of his co-defendants as his counsel as well. In support of his motion, he asserted his Sixth Amendment right to the counsel of his choice, and his willingness, as well as that of the affected co-defendants, to waive the right to conflict-free counsel. The trial court denied the substitution motion, finding irreconcilable and unwaiveable conflicts of interest for counsel, created by the likelihood that Wheat would be called to testify at any subsequent trial of one of his co-defendants and that the other would testify at Wheat's trial. In affirming the trial court, the Supreme Court noted the timing of the motion, just two days before trial, and emphasized the complexity of the drug distribution scheme alleged and the potential seriousness of the attorney's conflict, involving, as it did, three alleged co-conspirators of varying stature in the distribution scheme. The Court concluded: The District Court must recognize a presumption in favor of petitioner's counsel of choice, but that presumption may be overcome not only by a demonstration of actual conflict but by a showing of a serious potential for conflict. Wheat, 486 U.S. at 164, 108 S.Ct. at 1700, 100 L.Ed.2d at 152. Certainly, the petitioner's insistence on counsel of choice, which, by the way, does not burden the State's resources, does not implicate any of the recognized qualifications on the right to choice. Clearly, it does not come close to frustrating the orderly administration of the criminal justice system.
The majority holds, as we have seen, that the O.P.D. is not required to pay for expert assistance or other ancillary services if the defendant is not represented by the O.P.D. (or a panel attorney assigned by the O.P.D.) 390 Md. at 374, 889 A.2d at 343. Amplifying that holding, it explains: The operative part of the statutory definition of `indigent' contained in Art. 27A is that the defendant is financially unable, without undue hardship, to provide for the full payment of an attorney and all other necessary expenses of legal representation. The services provided by the O.P.D. are not severable. In order for the defendant to qualify for the benefits provided under the [Public Defender statute] and thereby require the [Office of the Public Defender] to pay for services, the defendant must be without independent means to obtain counsel. Id. As I interpret this holding, to qualify for State-funded services, a defendant must be represented by the OPD or one of its panel attorneys, but to qualify for OPD representation, he or she must be without independent means to obtain counsel. Thus, a defendant, though now indigent, who retained counsel when able to do so, would not qualify because, already having counsel, he or she would not be without independent means to obtain counsel. Similarly, a defendant who was always indigent, but had family who retained counsel for him or her or who was able to obtain pro bono counsel, [11] would not qualify because he or she was not represented by the OPD or a panel attorney. The majority rejoins that the defendant is not without recourse, he or she could accept OPD representation, with which comes the ancillary services, and that only requires either that the defendant forego the counsel of choice, whether retained when able, supplied by a third party or provided pro bono, who is willing and able to continue the representation and with whose services the defendant is satisfied, or that counsel become a panel attorney subject to the supervision of the OPD. [12] This scheme infringes on the indigent defendant's Sixth Amendment rights to counsel of choice, for the reasons discussed. In addition, it uses the wrong test of eligibility for ancillary services; rather than indigency and necessity, the factors identified and addressed in Ake, the majority predicates entitlement to ancillary services on the status of the attorney representing the indigent defendant. At least as important, the majority's interpretation of Article 27A produces anomalous and absurd results. Delaware, in Bailey v. State, 438 A.2d 877, 878 (Del.1981), held that a defendant who is indigent but who manages (through the assistance of others) to retain counsel is not entitled to the services of a Public Defender appointee nor to funding from the Public Defender's appropriation to employ an investigator as part of his defense effort. Nevertheless, it recognized an illogical aspect to its holding: an indigent defendant who relieves the public of the burden of representing him cannot secure investigative assistance which he can get (under the Public Defender Act) if he places the entire burden on the public. Id. In State v. Wool, 162 Vt. 342, 648 A.2d 655, 660 (1994), the Supreme Court of Vermont held that, under its Public Defender statute, an individual may qualify as `needy' despite the fact that the person can afford to pay for the services of or can otherwise retain an attorney, but cannot afford other necessary representation expenses ... [and] that [that statute] must be construed to entitle needy persons who are represented, either by an attorney or themselves, to public funding for other necessary expenses. That interpretation, it concluded, fosters sound fiscal and public policy, because a defendant would not be required to forego pro bono counsel or self-representation simply to obtain associated services at the public expense. Id., citing State v. Manning, 234 N.J.Super. 147, 560 A.2d 693, 699 (1989). See State v. Handson, 166 Vt. 85, 689 A.2d 1081, 1083 (1996), in which the court, in assessing the cost of necessary expenses in connection with the defendant's pro se defense against the State's public defender, observed: [b]y waiving the right to a public defender, defendant relieved the Defender General of a substantial financial obligation. See also Coyazo v. State, 120 N.M. 47, 897 P.2d 234, 240 (1995) (commenting on the advantageous impact maintenance of a cadre of private attorneys has on the public defender office  lessens the state's requirement for full time employees in the Public Defender Department). The high courts of Iowa and Minnesota agree. We have already seen that the Iowa Supreme Court has held, in English v. Missildine, 311 N.W.2d at 294, that the sixth amendment provides authority for furnishing investigative services to indigents at public expense without regard to whether the indigent is represented by counsel at public expense. The court has also observed: It would be strange if the Constitution required the government to furnish both counsel and investigative services in cases where the indigent needs and requests public payment for only investigative services. The State's theory would impose an unreasonable and unnecessary additional burden on the public treasury. Id. The Supreme Court of Minnesota made essentially the same point in State v. Pederson, 600 N.W.2d 451, 454 (Minn.1999), a case in which the court held an indigent defendant entitled to a trial transcript, despite the fact that he was represented by private appellate counsel. Rejecting the state's argument that legal representation and ancillary services were a package deal, the court stated: We acknowledge the concerns of the public defender and the dissent, but conclude that, like any other indigent criminal appellant whom the public defender offers to represent, Pederson is entitled to both the services of a public defender and a trial transcript at public expense.... We see no reason to force the state to pay for a service the indigent criminal appellant does not wish to use. Accordingly, Pederson has the right to refuse the services of the public defender, yet receive a trial transcript at public expense. Pederson, 600 N.W.2d at 454. For the preceding reasons, I dissent.