The Yolo County Public Defender’s Office provides legal services to adult, indigent persons accused of felony and misdemeanor criminal violations; juveniles prosecuted for alleged conduct that would be criminal if they were adults; proposed conservatees in mental health (conservatorship) cases; and other persons whose liberty may be affected by the government. In accomplishing these duties, the office utilizes an existing records management system to assist them in the systematic and efficient control of the creation, maintenance and destruction of the client records along with the various tasks associated with them. The current records management system is antiquated and requires revision to incorporate and take advantage of new technologies as well as provide better tracking of department resources in support of client needs.
The PDrms HTML5 Project includes the following tasks:
- Updating the system to HTML5 in taking advantage of the County's current standard in utilizing the Porto professional multipurpose responsive HTML5 template. Additionally, we plan to utilize the Porto admin extension tools that add a variety of key features such as dynamic dashboards and charts as well as customizable calendars and tools for addressing quantification of tasks and caseloads.
- Streamlining of current programed processes within PDrms and eliminate unnecessary and repetitive data entry.
- Use of proven, existing technology such as the LAWSuite Digital Profile that provides a single location to review all records for clients and staff caseloads and multi-update records as needed. In fact, the revision incorporates this concept as a system-wide standard to allow staff to work seamlessly within the client record and better manage caseloads.
- A careful review of existing departmental reports to allow for PDrms HTML5 revision to be based on reporting requirements. Appropriate database modifications are necessary to ensure accurate data collection and analysis.
- Continued enhancement of digital records management to expand upon the department's requirements related to paperless integration and e-discovery.
The revision process includes a plan to bring some features online incrementally to allow for a smooth transition to the revised system.
The proposed revisions and improvements will be conducted by a cross-departmental team, including staff from the Public Defender's Office and the General Services Department under an existing Memorandum of Understanding for software development. Additional work may be augmented by an existing General Services Department contract with Randstad Technologies at the discretion of the Project Manager. IT Innovation Funds are being requested to fund this project as follows:
- Public Defender Project Manager - $37,680 (1,000 hours at an hourly rate of $37.68)
- ITTD-GSD Programmer Analyst - $93,450 (890 hours at any hourly rate of $105)
- Total project cost is $131,130
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