The Capital Defender Office (CDO) was established in conjunction with the death penalty statute enacted in 1995. The Office is responsible for providing legal, investigative and expert services to indigent persons who are likely to be prosecuted for capital murder.

This agency is located within the Public Protection and General Government bill.

State Operations

The Executive proposes an All Funds State Operations appropriation of $13,095,000, representing a decrease of $802,000 from State Fiscal Year (SFY) 2002-03 spending levels. The decrease is due in part to the Executive recommendation to eliminate four staff positions through attrition, but is primarily due to a declining number of eligible capital cases. This caseload decline creates a corresponding reduction in the need for defense services provided by outside, non-CDO attorneys.