All data is current as of 2013, unless otherwise noted.
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How the right to counsel is administered and structured
State commission: none
Branch of government: executive
The Wyoming Office of the State Public Defender (OSPD) was established in 1976. OSPD is an executive branch agency whose chief executive, the state public defender who is appointed directly by the Governor, directs the delivery of all right to counsel services across the state, both primary and conflict services, from the main OSPD office in Cheyenne.
How the right to counsel is funded
Percentage of state funding: 85%
Percentage of local funding: 15%
Percentage of alternative funding: 0%
Wyoming statutes require that funding of indigent defense services be shared by the state and counties, with 85% of the total appropriation coming from state general funds and 15% from counties. The Office of the State Public Defender (OSPD) advocates at the state legislature for the entirety of the budget needed to provide all services. By statute, OSPD then bills each individual county for its prorated share of that statewide budget, based on an equitable formula that takes into account factors such as population, property valuation, and level of serious crime. This funding scheme eliminates the need for budgetary advocacy on multiple fronts, i.e., at the state legislature and in every county, and instead allows a single consideration of budgeting needs at the state level.
The methods used to provide public counsel
The Wyoming Office of the State Public Defender (OSPD) provides all right to counsel services throughout the state.
Primary services are provided by full-time and part-time OPD attorneys in fourteen branch public defender offices.
For conflict representation, OPD contracts with private attorneys.
Legal authority
Wyoming Constitution, art. I, § 10
Wyoming Statutes, §§ 7-6-101 through 7-6-114
Source of data: original research conducted by Sixth Amendment Center staff.
