Delta County Board signs indigent defense contract
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ESCANABA -- Delta County has entered into a contract in an effort to regionalize Michigan Indigent Defense Commission (MIDC) services for this fiscal year.
The Delta County Board of Commissioners on Tuesday signed the contract between Iron Defense, doing business as Superior Defense — a Michigan non-profit corporation — and Iron County. Dickinson and Delta Counties are considered participants in the multi-agency fiduciary agreement for criminal defense services.
Delta County is expected to open a local public defense office staffed by three full-time attorneys and a full-time legal assistant in an effort to provide a consistent and stable defense team dedicated to serving the county.
Superior Defense will provide legal representation to indigent criminal defendants in the 95-B District Court serving Dickinson County; the 41st Circuit Court in Menominee County; and the 94th District Court and 47th Circuit Court in Delta County. Superior Defense will also provide representation in the probate courts of each county in matters involving criminal or contempt charges that place an individual’s liberty at risk.
Services excluded from the contract include appeals filed in the Michigan Court of Appeals and Michigan Supreme Court, except for interlocutory appeals Superior Defense deems appropriate; appeals to the United States Supreme Court; and habeas corpus proceedings in the United States District Courts and Court of Appeals.
The duration of the contract will be from Oct. 1, 2026, through Sept. 30, 2027. The agreement will automatically renew for a one-year period provided both State of Michigan funding and Dickinson and Delta County funding in full are present.
Iron County will serve as the fiduciary to Iron, Dickinson and Delta Counties and to the indigent defense system in their management of the indigent defense fund during that time, as well.
According to the contract, Superior Defense will pay for all costs, fees and expenses incurred providing the contract services as well as all overhead costs such as general office, secretarial, staffing, phone, supplies, equipment and subcontract fees paid to other attorneys, per the MIDC’s approved budget for the years covered by the contract.
Additionally, counties in the contract will have no liability and will be indemnified for malpractice claims which may be made by those represented by Superior Defense pursuant to the contract.
In other business, commissioners:
-- Approved a resolution in support of Operation Green Light for Veterans, a nationwide initiative from Nov. 4 to Nov. 11 each year. The Delta County Courthouse, entryway to the Veterans Affairs Office and Delta County Airport entrance areas will be lit up with green lights as part of the initiative to show support for veterans and raise awareness of the challenges they face during the transition from military to civilian life.
-- Approved the 2027 Delta County Parks Policy and Regulations Manual, as requested by the Delta County Parks and Recreation Commission and Parks Manager Heather LeDuc.
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Sophie Vogelmann can be reached at 906-786-2021 or svogelmann@dailypress.net.