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Mason County delays adoption of new case-waiting policy while moving contractor contracts to the next agenda
Summary
Public defense staff proposed a weighted "case-waiting" system to meet Washington State Supreme Court reductions beginning in 2026. Commissioners agreed to place a contract package for outside counsel (Tashner) on tomorrow's action agenda and deferred formal adoption of the countywide policy to January for further review.
Public Defense staff briefed Mason County commissioners on a proposed county case-waiting policy and accompanying contractor contracts, saying the change is required to comply with Washington State Supreme Court directives to reduce attorney caseloads starting in 2026. The office recommended a weighted system that assigns higher "case weight" points to complex cases (for example, life-without-parole or murder), while giving lower weights to quicker matters such as probation violations.
The proposal, developed with reference to RAND research and practices in neighboring counties, aims to limit county liability and prevent contractors from being asked to take caseloads that could create…
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