1. Each Accused charged with a felony punishable by the death penalty or life imprisonment sentence shall have an attorney to defend him / her during the trial stage. If the Accused fails to appoint an attorney to defend him / her, the court shall appoint an attorney to defend him / her, and the State shall bear the professional fees of the attorney so appointed, as described in the law. 2. The Accused charged with a felony punishable by a determinate prison sentence may request that the court appoint an attorney to defend him / her if the Court is convinced that the same is financially unable to appoint an attorney. 3. If the attorney appointed by the court has and asserts any excuses or impediments that would prevent him from defending the accused, the attorney shall forthwith furnish the same to the Chief Justice of the Criminal Court. If the court accepts the excuses, another attorney shall be appointed.
Interpretation and application must be checked against the official text and current version.