Montana News

Snow delays appointment of new MT Public Defender

Posted: Jan 23, 2012 11:12 AM by Dennis Bragg
Updated: Jan 23, 2012 11:12 AM

HELENA- It will be early next month before we find out who will be the next Public Defender for the State of Montana, after stormy weather interrupts the final choice between attorneys from Hamilton and Helena.

The State Public Defenders Office announced last week that it had narrowed the search for the position down to Dave Stenerson from Hamilton and William F. Hooks of Helena. The state is looking for the replacement for Randi Hood, who recently stepped down. The position oversees public defender's offices across the state.

The 11-member Montana Public Defender Commission had been set to interview both men and make an appointment during their regular monthly meeting last January. But the sudden storm that swept across the state forced the commission to cancel its meeting for a lack of a quorum.

Commission Chair Richard "Fritz" Gillespie tells Montana's News Station the interviews, and the appointment, are being postponed to the panel's next meeting on February 11th in Helena.

Stenerson has practiced law in Montana for more than 20 years, including week as the regional manager for the Public Defenders Office in Region 2, which includes Missoula, Mineral and Ravalli counties. Most recently he's been serving as the Acting Public Defender while the search for Hooks' permanent replacement is underway.

Hooks practices in Helena and passed the bar in 1985 and for the past 20 years has worked in the state's appellate defender's office handling case appeals before the Montana Supreme Court.