Court Opinion

ID: 9528215
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-07 03:38:29.956359+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T13:26:35.948851
License: Public Domain

BIRD, C. J .
I concur in the result reached by the majority, but I would reverse the judgment because the contract between Madera County and the public defender created so fundamental a conflict of interest as to deprive all defendants jointly represented by that office of the right to counsel under article I, section 15 of the California Constitution.
*382Since the public defender’s compensation would have been directly reduced by the cost of employing private counsel when a conflict arose among codefendants, he had a direct interest in avoiding this financial penalty. As a result, the public defender could not be expected to investigate possible conflicts of interest or to give codefendants unbiased advice concerning their right to separate counsel when a conflict was evident. The public defender’s financial interests conflicted with his clients’ right to counsel.