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State public defender seeks $1.5M for resource navigators and eight attorneys to cut rural caseloads
Summary
Debbie Maddox, executive director of the Oklahoma Indigent Defense System, proposed a $1.5 million package to expand resource navigators and $750,000 in direct-care cash alongside a request for eight attorneys and $2.48 million to sustain county contracts, citing high caseloads in Norman and Lawton and service deserts in western Oklahoma.
Debbie Maddox, executive director of the Oklahoma Indigent Defense System, told the appropriations subcommittee that OIDS serves 75 counties and handled more than 47,000 cases last year on a budget under $30 million. She asked the committee to fund an expansion of the agencys resource navigator program and pilot direct-care services aimed at stabilizing clients after release, plus additional attorneys to reduce untenable caseloads in the system's busiest offices.
Maddox said the agency seeks $1.5 million to add six resource navigators to the four already in place, hire a project manager experienced in grants, and allocate $750,000 in cash for direct client care (housing, transportation, program fees and other immediate needs). She also requested eight additional attorney positions (four to Norman, two to Lawton and two roving attorneys) to lower extreme caseloads that reached about 250 files per lawyer in the busiest offices.
Why it matters: Maddox framed the request as both a public-safety and fiscal-efficiency measure: properly resourced diversion, housing support and client navigation, she said, reduce recidivism and county jail costs. Maddox cited research suggesting a combination of diversion programs could save tens of millions statewide and described partnerships with the Department of Mental Health and local prosecutors as essential to scaling programs.
Details and context: The proposal includes requests to sustain the existing county-contractor model (roughly $2.48 million) and to expand internal training and satellite-office staffing. Maddox explained the system's two-track model (satellite offices and competitive county contractors) and said contractor per-case costs average about $311, while satellite offices run about $700 per case. She told senators that grant-writing capacity is limited and that a project manager would be tasked with pursuing federal and private grant funds referenced in related state proposals.
What legislators asked: Senators pressed on grant prospects, metrics and whether these programs would require prosecutor buy-in. Maddox said many diversion grants are available but some funders want outcome data before committing; she also said prosecutor buy-in in Oklahoma is inconsistent and noted pending legislation (noted in testimony) that could direct a portion of certain statewide savings to OIDS.
Next steps: The committee acknowledged the plan and said it will review the supplemental and FTE requests as part of the appropriations process.
