The right to an attorney has come up against the right to a speedy trial in various areas within Washington state, and the fix that’s being weighed by the State Supreme Court is causing concern for some local municipalities including Federal Way.
The State Supreme Court heard arguments about whether to reduce caseloads for public defenders on Nov. 13. This option is one response to shortages around the state that have led to a variety of issues.
In Federal Way, a reduction in caseload limits could “potentially double or triple the cost to prosecute misdemeanor offenses,” according to a statement by the City of Federal Way. “This would lead to unnecessary delays in filing charges if no public defender is available and lead to an overburdening of our ability to pay for these costs.”
Opposing this legislation was one of a few points the Federal Way City Council and city staff chose to focus on during the legislative agenda breakfast on Nov. 7.
Since then, the State Supreme Court has met for the final public hearing on the issue and has heard from both those that agree with the City of Federal Way and those that do not.
At that legislative breakfast, 30th District State Rep. Jamila Taylor said she is “on top of the issue.”
If the caseload limit does change, Taylor said that the Office of Defense is “asking for about $45 million to be doled out after that process to the cities and counties” to help them deal with the additional costs.
“My hope is that we’ll have the resources there in terms of the caseload standards. My hope is that there will be flexibility, and not just the mandate across the board, but our crisis and crackdown in the public defense is impacting cases to be advanced in constitutional issues,” Taylor said.
Taylor also passed legislation this year to get more support to public defenders. House Bill 1911 will “facilitate placing clerks, externs, and interns with public defense attorneys for training,” according to House Democrats.
That law went into effect on June 6, 2024.
This is one of the things the recent study suggested to deal with the challenge of staffing shortages. The Washington State Bar Association recommended a phased approach to reducing caseloads in Washington state in a document published in 2024. This would begin with a cap of 110 felony case credits or 280 misdemeanor case credits per year, down to a cap of 47 felony case credits or 120 misdemeanor case credits per year in 2027.
So far in 2024, the City of Federal Way has been billed for 1,284 cases by the city’s public defender and conflict public defenders, according to a city spokesperson.
The city contracts with law firm Stewart MacNichols Harmell Inc. P.S. for public defense, which is based in Kent.
