In the famous 1963 case Gideon v. Wainwright, made into a movie starring Henry Fonda (watch it below), the Supreme Court ruled states must provide indigent defendants with lawyers in criminal case (details here).
In Washington, counties and cities employ public defenders for this task. But the state is facing a public defender staffing crisis as low pay and crushing caseloads drive lawyers out of public defense (see story here).
Therefore, the Washington Supreme Court is considering lowering workload standards for public defenders. This will, of course, cost money for more lawyers, and associations representing counties and cities are objecting they can’t afford it (read story here).
But it’s not optional. No public defenders, no prosecutions. This is part of overall public safety budgeting. If local governments can afford police and prosecutors, they also can afford public defenders, because it’s all part of the same criminal justice system.
If there’s no more money, then budgets need to be rebalanced, to make sure all aspects of the criminal justice system are sufficiently funded for the system to operate. Shortchanging public defense is the same as not paying for enough judges. It means letting criminals go free to prey on communities.
For years they’ve gotten away with skimping on public defense, but no longer. Counties and cities can complain all they like, but the court will side with satisfying the constitutional requirements. So they’re better start thinking about how they’re going to adequately fund public defense, because the Constitution won’t take “no” for an answer.
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