On Monday, January 24th the last development build of the Public Defender Information System (PDIS) was deployed. The PDIS was implemented in three stages during its pilot phase. The initial release was deployed in September 2010, and in November the second set of enhancements was added.
The Public Defender offices in Floyd, Monroe and Washington counties have the capability to access Odyssey case information and to create their own electronic case file. These users can also create and maintain private client files. A client file can consist of a client’s demographical information, case information, scheduled hearings, contacts, notes and court fees. Public defenders have the ability to view and print their court calendars as well as incorporate their court, office and personal appointments into one calendar. The assignment and tracking of tasks is another functionality for public defenders in the PDIS.
In addition to having the ability to view and print the court case summaries, users can add their own events to their copy of the case summaries for a more comprehensive list of case events for their clients. Reporting is another feature of PDIS that public defenders can use to better manage their caseloads. The report information from the Client Summary, Client Appointments, Attorney Caseload, Court Fees, Case Assignment and Case Duration reports can be printed or exported into an Excel document.
The Public Defender Council was awarded additional funding through ICJI to support and further enhance the PDIS application. Statewide deployment is forthcoming as other Public Defender offices have expressed their interest in implementing the PDIS as their office case management system.
For additional information please contact Don Murphy at dsmurphy@iquest.net or 317-232-5515, or LaJuan Epperson at lepperson@jtac.in.gov or 317-234-2870.
