WASHINGTON, USA — The Washington State Supreme Court is considering new standards for public defenders. During a hearing on Wednesday, those against and in favor of the proposal were given time to make their arguments.
"In King County, in 2024 alone, the Department of Public Defense has lost 19% of its lawyer workforce, 75% of whom were qualified to represent clients in the most serious cases,” Jason Schwarz with the Washington State Bar Association testified.
Matthew Sanders, the interim director of the King County Department of Public Defense, says the state's court system is in the thick of a crisis.
"The caseloads are so big, which is driving the most talented and experienced people out, and we're not able to replace them because folks know what the deal is, and who would sign up for this?” Sanders asked. "It's not uncommon for our attorneys to carry 80, 90 felony cases and you can't work on all of those at a time."
"The current standards assume that it takes 11 hours to complete each felony case,” said Schwarz.
A national report published last year found the average time to represent an individual in an adult criminal case ranged from 286 hours to 13.5 hours, depending on the type of case.
A proposal aims to cut caseloads and add resources, like more support staff, in phases over three years. Critics of the plan say it is too costly.
"If adopted and implemented, these standards will, at minimum, double or triple county costs without increased funding for these services,” said Derek Young with the Washington State Association of Counties.
"Implementation of the recommended revisions to the standards for indigent defense could cost cities alone upwards of 400 million dollars annually more than their current expenses," said Deanna Dawson with the Association of Washington Cities. "Local jurisdictions would have approximately 30 months to triple the number of defense attorneys."
That's some of the pushback, but others say that lawyers are leaving the profession while cases are piling up.
"Right now, in Yakima there are over 320 people awaiting appointment of counsel. Seventy of them are in custody,” said Schwarz.
"Thankfully, we're not at that point. What's happening in Yakima, what's happening in Oregon, those are warning shots,” said Sanders.
The Washington State Supreme Court will accept written public comments about this issue through October. Another meeting is scheduled for November.