The cost of a constitutional guarantee is getting more debate in Mohave County.

The Board of Supervisors will once again discuss the cost of providing attorney services to defendants that can’t afford to hire their own counsel and how much of an impact that will have on the county’s bottom line.

The board meets today in Kingman.

Public Defender Dana Hlavac reports his office is overwhelmed with cases and has testified in Superior Court why his office should be removed from representing nearly a dozen defendants. State law dictates that public defenders are limited to 150 cases per attorney per year and Hlavac has stated his attorneys are at the statutory limit.

In November the supervisors approved spending $300,000 in contingency funds because of increased spending for outside defense attorneys. The Public Defender’s Office has spent in excess of $1 million more than originally budgeted for the hiring of outside counsel.

Outside counsel is brought in when the Public Defender’s Office has a conflict in the case, such as more than one defendant, or when the office is at its maximum caseload.

Board Chairman Pete Byers placed the item on today’s agenda. In November, he asked for data from other counties and how they are handling increased caseloads as well as staffing levels in those other county Public Defender’s Offices. FOR FULL STORY, SEE TODAY'S NEWS-HERALD.