All data is current as of 2013, unless otherwise noted.
Return to the list of all States & Territories.
How the right to counsel is administered and structured
State commission: none
Branch of government: executive
The American Samoa Office of the Public Defender (ASOPD) is an independent agency of the executive branch of the government. The governor appoints ASOPD’s chief defender with advice and consent of the territorial legislature to a term of four years.
The chief and assistant public defenders have salary parity with their counterparts in the Office of the Attorney General. There is only one district court in Pago Pago on the main island of Tutuila that serves the five islands and two atolls that comprise American Samoa.
How the right to counsel is funded
Percentage of territorial funding: 100%
Percentage of local funding: 0%
Percentage of alternative funding: 0%
Legal authority
American Samoa Constitution, art. 1, § 6
American Samoa Administrative Code, § 4.0320 (public defender) and § 46.1001 (right to counsel)
Source of data: original research conducted by Sixth Amendment Center staff.
