Mills Admin is seeking immigration law consultants to assist public defenders in non-citizen criminal and juvenile cases

The Maine Commission on Public Defense Services, formerly known as the Maine Commission on Indigent Legal Services, is seeking to hire immigration law consultants to assist the state’s public defenders in representing noncitizen defendants.

According to a request for proposals (RFP) document released Thursday by the Mills administration, the state is seeking proposals from attorneys and law firms that provide immigration law advice to public defenders who represent indigent noncitizens in criminal and juvenile cases.

“The successful bidder will provide immediate immigration law advice to attorneys representing indigent noncitizens in criminal and juvenile cases,” the Mills government wrote in the solicitation.

[RELATED: Janet Mills Signs Bill Adding Ten New Public Defenders Across Rural Maine…]

The Immigration Legal Counsel is expected to be on call during regular business hours to respond to Public Defender inquiries, primarily via email, and to work an estimated 12 to 18 hours per week for the Public Defender Service.

The consultant is also expected to participate as a speaker in a half-day training program run by the Maine Commission on Public Defense Services to learn about basic immigration laws and minimum standards for criminal and juvenile justice.

The RFP document does not indicate how much the Mills government plans to spend on the immigration law consultant contract. The Commission will accept proposals from bidders until November 14th.

In March of this year, Maine Governor Janet Mills (D) signed a bill that created two new public defender offices for Aroostook, Penobscot and Piscataquis counties and added ten new public defenders, bringing the total statewide from 15 to 25.

At the time of the bill’s passage, more than 500 adult offenders were without legal representation due to a shortage of public defenders in the state.