Keenan v. Superior Court

Opinion

MOSK, J.

Maurice Keenan, an indigent defendant charged with a capital offense, seeks a writ of mandate to compel respondent superior court to grant his motion for public funds to pay for the services of a second attorney to assist iii the preparation of his defense. He relies on *427Penal Code section 987.9 as authority for this request.1 For the reasons that follow, we hold that the trial court abused its discretion in denying appointment of additional counsel but that the appointment should be made under section 987, subdivision (b), and that section 987.9’s provisions for confidentiality…