Pretrial services reports growth in MacArthur capstone-supported supported-release program; participants show high court-appearance rates

Aaron Stormberger, pretrial-services manager, briefed commissioners on Oct. 28 about Spokane County's capstone grant from the MacArthur Foundation and the county's supported-release program, which relaunched March 3 after operations shifted into county pretrial services.

Stormberger said the MacArthur award enabled the county to expand eligibility and retool operations. He told commissioners the program is voluntary and now permits referral of any defendant in district court to the supported-release program (previously certain charges were disqualifying), though the bench ultimately determines appropriateness for an individual. Intake happens within seven days of a first-appearance release and includes a needs assessment and a written support plan with referrals (housing, employment, mental health, transportation, court support). Staff provide court reminders, accompany participants to court, and help with bench-warrant recall when warranted.

Stormberger provided enrollment data through September: 95 individuals actively enrolled at the time of the snapshot, additional people in intake, and a mix of case outcomes (47 cases successfully adjudicated while 34 declined services and 96 did not report). Among participants engaging with the program, appearance rates for court hearings were high (about 90%+ of hearings made) and arrest/citation rates were low (cited or arrested in roughly 310% of monitored cases). Stormberger also outlined an FTA-tracker position hired in June to address failures to appear on out-of-custody district-court arraignment dockets and a courthouse navigator desk on the courthouse's first floor that has provided wayfinding and resource referrals to more than 1,300 people.

Commissioners and remote stakeholders praised the work; one commissioner asked about grant size and staff confirmed the MacArthur grant at about $540,000 and said portions fund two staff positions and program supports. Staff noted the UpTrust text-notification system is in use by other partners (public defender and court) and that correct contact information remains a key challenge for reducing FTAs.