Controlling court loads

Medical Lake’s City Council took an initial step to bring its municipal court up to speed regarding public defender caseload rules adopted by Washington’s Supreme Court and Legislature.

At its Jan. 17 meeting, the council held a discussion and first reading of an ordinance limiting the municipal court public defender to no more than 300 cases per year “as determined through a case weighted policy.” Other courts in the state have been adopting the policy recommended by the Supreme Court, including Cheney Municipal Court, which handles cases for Medical Lake’s court as well as public defender se...