HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WAFF) – A Madison County judge and the county’s Indigent Defense Advisory Board have each been fined $1 for failing to comply with Alabama’s Open Meetings Act.
Judge Donna Pate and the Madison County indigent defense board held a closed-door meeting on Dec. 29 without public notice. During that meeting, the board voted to transition to a public defenders office model for criminal defendants who cannot afford an attorney.
Defense attorney Eric Wood and others challenged the meeting, arguing it violated the Alabama Open Meetings Act. A Blount County judge ruled in Wood’s favor…