Bill description: SB 1284 protects the confidentiality of indigent defendants' legal assistance by clarifying that Public Defense Commission records are exempt from disclosure under public records law.

Rating: +1

Does it violate the spirit or the letter of either the U.S. Constitution or the Idaho Constitution? Examples include restrictions on speech, public assembly, the press, privacy, private property, or firearms. Conversely, does it restore or uphold the protections guaranteed in the U.S. Constitution or the Idaho Constitution?

SB 1284 protects two important constitutional rights — the right to privacy and the right to be represented by an attorney in a criminal trial. It does so by making it clear that certain records of the state public defense commission are exempt from disclosure under Idaho's public records law.

The items covered by this legislation include records "containing information protected or exempted from disclosure under the rules adopted by the Idaho supreme court, attorney work product, attorney client privileged communication, records containing confidential information from an individual about his criminal case or performance of his attorney, or confidential information about an inquiry into an attorney's fitness to represent indigent defendants."

(+1)