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RCW 36.26.070

Duty to represent indigent defendants.

Applied in 2 court decisions — leading case 87 Wash. 2d 697 - Vovos v. Grant (1976)

Most recently applied in 33 Wash. App. 466 - State v. Dougherty (December 1982)

2009 c 549 s 4043; 1984 c 76 s 18; 1969 c 94 s 7.

The public defender must represent, without charge to any accused, every indigent person who is or has been arrested or charged with a crime for which court appointed counsel for indigent defendants is required either under the Constitution of the United States or under the Constitution and laws of the state of Washington:

(1) If such arrested person or accused, having been apprised of his or her constitutional and statutory rights to counsel, requests the appointment of counsel to represent him or her; and

(2) If a court, on its own motion or otherwise, does not appoint counsel to represent the accused; and

(3) Unless the arrested person or accused, having been apprised of his or her right to counsel in open court, affirmatively rejects or intelligently repudiates his or her constitutional and statutory rights to be represented by counsel.

Official source: Washington State Legislature. Reproduced from public-domain Washington statutes; confirm against the official source for the current text. Not legal advice.