Prosecutor’s office can’t keep up with cases

The number of cases pouring into the Spokane County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office has grown by 60 percent in two years while the number of cases prosecutors have filed has remained stagnant.

It’s not because of a lack of hard work, said Spokane County Prosecutor Steve Tucker. It’s a lack of manpower.

It will take 11 more workers to make a dent in the backlogged caseload, Tucker told Spokane County commissioners Tuesday.

Right now, there are 700 felony cases waiting to be reviewed, he said, and things are only likely to get worse if more prosecuting attorneys aren’t hired.

By March – a quarter of the way through 2005 – the county had received a third of the adult felony cases it handled in all of 2004, said Prosecuting Attorney’s Office Administrator Debby Kurbitz. The county is on track to have 25 percent more adult felony cases this year than last.

Some cases have been abandoned altogether.

“We have stopped attending the contested traffic infraction docket,” said Kurbitz.

Commissioners said they understand the situation, but need to examine the county’s financial situation and consider the effect more prosecuting positions would have on the Public Defender and on the courts before they say “yea” or “nay” to Tucker’s request.

That review will take about a month, said county CEO Marshall Farnell.

Hiring all the employees Tucker requested would cost about $500,000 a year.

“You’re really looking at about $2 million,” because more staff would probably be needed in other departments to keep up with the prosecutor’s office, said Commissioner Phil Harris.

Public Defender John Rodgers came to the commissioners last spring with his own request for additional attorneys and investigators. Commissioners granted three of the 10 employees he requested.

Rodgers said in a telephone interview Tuesday that regardless of Tucker’s request, the defender’s office still needs more people.

“If he beefs up his staff, our need will probably be more acute,” Rodgers said.