By Leslie Bonilla MuñizIndiana Capital ChronicleINDIANAPOLIS – County collections of public defense fees designated for the state of Indiana are far below expectations, even as expenditures for the constitutionally mandated service hit record highs. Hoosiers who’ve been accused of crimes but can’t afford private counsel have the right to public defense under the U.S. and Indiana constitutions. Indiana lawmakers doubled the fees that year – with the additional amount required to go to the state’s public defense fund, in line with Senate Enrolled Act 179. Mason’s agency taps the public defense fund to reimburse member counties for 50% of public defense expenses in capital cases and 40% for work in non-capital felony cases. Twenty-four counties transmitted no money to the state’s public defense fund last year, while another dozen sent over less than $500 apiece, according to a commission map.