Oregon Justice Fires Panel Over Lack of Public Defenders

SALEM, Ore. (AP) — The chief justice of the Oregon Supreme Court on Monday fired all members of the Public Defense Services Commission, frustrated that hundreds of criminal defendants who cannot afford an attorney have been unable to obtain public defenders who represent them.

The unprecedented action comes as Oregon’s unique public defender system has been under so much pressure that it is on the verge of breaking down. Criminal defendants in Oregon who have been left without legal representation due to a shortage of public defenders filed a lawsuit in May alleging the state is violating his constitutional right to an attorney and a speedy trial.

In a letter to commission members, Presiding Judge Martha Walters noted that their duty is to “ensure that Oregon provides public defense services in accordance with the Oregon Constitution, the United States Constitution, and national standards of justice and from Oregon.”

“Unfortunately, it is now clear that it is time to reconstitute the current commission,” he said.

Oregon’s public defender system is the only one in the nation that relies entirely on contractors: large nonprofit defense firms, smaller groups of cooperating private defense attorneys who hire cases, and independent attorneys who can take on cases at will.

But some firms and private attorneys periodically decline to take new cases due to workload. Low payment rates and late payments from the state are also a disincentive. The American Bar Association found that Oregon has only 31% of the public defenders it needs.

Walters said “systemic change” is required and that the commission must collaborate with the executive and legislative branches of Oregon and the public defense community “to create a better system for public defense providers.”

The Public Defense Services Commission currently has nine members, in addition to Walters, who as Chief Justice serves as an ex officio permanent member. Walters made the firings effective Tuesday and said if any member wants to serve on a reconstituted commission, he must apply by noon Tuesday.

One of the members is Steven Wax, who has extensive public defense experience. He was the US Public Defender for the District of Oregon for 31 years and is currently legal director of the Oregon Innocence Project, which focuses on wrongful convictions.

In a brief phone interview, Wax said he is not happy with the Chief Justice’s action.

“The commission has been working tirelessly on difficult issues and reforms,” Wax said. “Disagreement is inevitable. I was very disappointed to receive the letter from the Chief Justice.”

He declined to comment further, including whether he would run for a reconstituted commission, an independent body that governs the Office of Public Defense Services and appoints its executive director. Its main mission is to establish “a public defense system that ensures the provision of public defense services in the most cost-effective manner possible.”

The chief justice of the Supreme Court appoints its members and can remove them, in accordance with Oregon law.

“I never anticipated exercising this authority, but this issue is too important and the need for change too urgent to delay,” Walters said.

Todd Sprague, a spokesman for the Oregon Judicial Department, said to his knowledge the entire commission had never been fired before.

Oregon’s backlog has led to the dismissal of dozens of cases and, as of last May, left roughly 500 defendants statewide without legal representation.

Jesse Merrithew, an attorney representing the plaintiffs in the lawsuit, said being deprived of an attorney right after an arrest causes problems that are nearly impossible to overcome later, for example, getting surveillance video before it’s erased. that could support a defendant’s case.

The Oregon system was underfunded and understaffed prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, but the backlog increased amid a slowdown in court activity due to safety protocols.

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