Sec. 1. 15 MRSA §1003, sub-§5-A, as enacted by PL 1995, c. 356, §1, is amended to read:

5-A. Failure to appear. "Failure to appear" includes a failure to appear at the time or place required by a release order and the failure to surrender into custody at the time and place required by a release order or by the Maine Rules of Criminal Procedure, Rule 32(a) and Rule 38(c).

Sec. 2. 15 MRSA §1075 is enacted to read:

§1075.__Attorney not to act as surety or deposit cash bail for

client

An attorney, while representing a defendant, may not act as surety for or deposit cash bail for the client.

SUMMARY

This bill amends the definition of "failure to appear" to include a failure to surrender into custody at the time and place required under the Maine Rules of Criminal Procedure, Rule 32(a)(1).

The bill also prohibits an attorney in a criminal matter, while representing a defendant, from providing cash bail or acting as surety for the client. This same prohibition is found in the Maine Rules of Criminal Procedure, Rule 26(d).