November 8, 2024
Dear Executive Sidhu and councilmembers,
The Riveters Collective Justice System Committee continues to follow the County’s progress toward reforming the local justice system.
After reviewing the October 8, 2024, Justice Project Legal and Justice System Committee meeting, it is apparent to us that the antiquated criminal-legal system generally, and the public defense system specifically, no longer functions in the best interests of Whatcom County residents. Taxpayers will benefit from an in-depth process-improvement analysis, and implementation of any and all relevant findings. We strongly encourage funding and contracting with an external Lean consultant to begin this work as soon as possible.
Further, design of the ’new jail’ must include appropriate space and support for public defense personnel and activities. To ensure this, you must meaningfully include a public defense principal in the jail design process going forward.
Also, we learned the Public Defender Advisory Board is not meeting minimum expectations. quorums are not met and meetings are not held as frequently as established by charter. We request course correction for the advisory board in the very near term.
We respectfully request that you prioritize our concerns as you convene budget discussions. As noted in the October 31 edition of the Cascadia Daily News, Whatcom County’s government is “an organization under stress”. We submit that addressing our concerns will improve outcomes for the organization and community at large.
Sincerely,
Riveters Collective Justice System Committee