Maine Commission on Indigent Legal Services

The ACLU has sought to name several defendants in its class action lawsuit alleging that the state is failing to uphold its obligation under the constitution to provide affective counsel for criminal defendants who cannot afford their own attorney.

The changes are temporary and fairly technical, and the commission's executive director emphasized that all attorneys taking court-appointed work will still be thoroughly vetted.

As Maine's indigent representation system struggles, defense attorneys say part of the problem is an overburdened, backlogged court system.

The ACLU and defense attorneys pushed back against the governor's comments, arguing that all branches of state government bear responsibility for the state's failure to provide attorneys to defendants who can't afford one.

The legal organization is currently suing Maine, claiming the state is failing in its constitutional obligation to provide low-income defendants with attorneys.

The additional offices and staff come at a time when state officials acknowledge Maine is in the middle of a "constitutional crisis" because there are not enough attorneys available to represent low-income criminal defendants.

Justice Michaela Murphy wrote that the proposed settlement between the state and the ACLU of Maine lacks enforcement capability and, in the meantime, the "constitutional crisis" over a lack of attorneys is getting worse.

Maine Supreme Judicial Court Justice Valerie Stanfill also said Maine is still in the middle of a "constitutional crisis" over its struggle to provide attorneys to low-income defendants.

The office will have six attorneys and is part of a multi-year push by the Maine Commission on Indigent Legal Services to open additional public defender offices around the state.

A Superior Court judge rejected an earlier settlement aimed at ending a lawsuit filed by the ACLU of Maine, saying it didn't adequately address the "looming crisis." But the latest proposal seeks to address the judge's concerns.