Section 31-15-9 - Duty of chief public defender to establish district public defender office; appointment of district public defender. - New Mexico Statutes

31-15-9. Duty of chief public defender to establish district public defender office; appointment of district public defender.

A.     The chief shall designate one or more public defender districts having boundaries coextensive with the boundaries of one or more judicial districts of this state. The chief shall consider the demand for legal services provided under the Public Defender Act [31-15-1 NMSA 1978], criminal case load statistics, population, geographical characteristics and any other relevant factor in the designation of public defender districts.   

B.     The chief may review the designation of districts at any time. The review shall be based on the same factors enumerated in Subsection A of this section. On the basis of the review the chief may change the designation of any district so long as the new designation has boundaries coextensive with the boundaries of one or more judicial districts of this state.   

C.     The chief shall appoint a district public defender in each district. The district public defender shall administer the operation of the district and shall serve at the pleasure of the chief. Each district public defender shall be an attorney licensed to practice law in the highest courts of this state and a resident of this state.