Frio increases fees paid to court-appointed attorneys

By Breyana Segura - Chief Staff Writer | November 27, 2024

In a step towards compensating court-appointed attorneys, Frio County officials have boosted the flat fee for counselors who represent indigent defendants on misdemeanor cases.
During a presentation by Frio County Attorney Joseph Sindon earlier this month, commissioners reviewed the new fee schedule which took effect on November 6.
“I know you guys have talked about, or mentioned a couple of times, raising the court-appointed fee structure in Frio County and, specifically in cases where they just take a flat fee,” Sindon said during a meeting on Tuesday, November 12. “They were getting three hundred dollars, which even though we raised it four years ago, it is still kind of trailing behind the other counties in our district, so judge [Rochelle Camacho] wanted to up it to four hundred dollars.”
The county attorney further noted that the power to determine what court-appointed attorneys are paid is the sole discretion of the judge of that court as per the code of criminal procedures.
“She has to present that to you as a court so you know it has been changed,” Sindon said. “This is her new fee schedule. The only change is attorneys who take a flat fee, instead of three hundred dollars, can take four.”
According to records filed at the county clerk’s office, the county has four attorneys in the selection pool for court-appointed cases – Katie Roberts, Atascosa Area Advocates, Michael Zamora and Sean Simpson. Sylvia Rodriguez is in the process of being added to the pool.
Roberts and Rodriguez are local attorneys.
From January 4, 2024, until last week, there have been 301 court-appointed attorney misdemeanor cases in Frio County.
“Again, for a lawyer coming out of San Antonio it does not take much for that to just cover gas,” Sindon said.
According to Frio County Judge Rochelle Camacho, attorneys are selected through a process using Tech Share.
Once individuals have been charged with a misdemeanor crime, they are able to request a public defender. The offender must apply for an affidavit of indigence which is run through the Tech Share system to see if the individual meets qualifications. Contingent on qualification, the application is reviewed by Camacho and, if approved, is entered into Tech Share where an attorney is selected at random, according to the county clerk’s office.
“We do have these attorneys who are selected through a process through Tech Share; my only deal was I have seen these past two years and through the court system, the same individuals committing themselves to Frio County for our cases,” the county judge said. “So I do feel, in all fairness, they do deserve what we are trying to do.”
Camacho added the discussion regarding an increase to the flat fee took place during budget workshops, noting the funds were allocated for the change.