July 20, 2001
Closing of public defenders office proves to be costly
By Erik Burriss
Staff Writer
However much savings the county commissioners planned to gain by closing the public defenders office, as of Thursday they can forget about $32,000-worth.
At $3.94 per certified letter, $32,000 is about what it will cost to notify every defendant the public defenders office has represented since it opened-- about 8,000 people -- that as of Aug. 6, they will be former clients of the public defenders office.
Faced with the prospect of a court ordering the certified mailings, the Board of County Commissioners voted 2-1 Thursday to adopt the procedure.
"It gives us evidence we have mailed notice to the clients," public defender Gary Hauter said, "and it gives us evidence of what happened on the other end."
Any private law practice that closed -- rather than simply being sold -- would have the same procedures recommended, Hauter said.
"If not adequate, our attorneys could lose their licenses, and the county could have liability issues," he said. "When the office is closed down, the requirements are much more stringent. You have to make your best effort."
The solution was arrived at during a Wednesday meeting of the county commissioners, public defender, prosecutor and two judges.
"It was fairly clear to me the lawyers rested squarely with the public defender," County Commissioner Ken Estep said. "The citizens of Seneca County could spend the money much better doing it another way."
County Commissioner Tom Distel was more succinct
"I think we got hustled," Distel said. "It's part of the game, but I don't have to be happy about it."
There is no law requiring the notices be sent by certified letter, County Commissioner Jeff Wagner said, and the same thing could be accomplished by regular mail for a fraction of the cost
"It seems to me the lawyers are looking out for themselves -- and maybe the indigent -- but someone needs to look out for the taxpayer," said Wagner, who cast the dissenting vote. "It's a huge amount of money."
While Distel and Estep voted for instituting the procedure, both made it clear they were unhappy with it and felt that if the procedure was not approved, it would be court-ordered.
"I will support it to get it over with," Estep said.
"The way I understand it, we don't have a choice," Distel said. "We have to go along with whatever he wants to do and he's taking the most expensive way, which I can't think is the most appropriate or right way for tax money."
All three commissioners questioned the value of using such an expensive system when it is unlikely that even half of the letters will ever reach the public defenders' clients.
"It might make lawyer sense, but it doesn't make good common sense," Wagner said.
Letters have already been sent to the last known addresses of about 250 of the public defenders' clients and former clients, County Administrator Bob Anderson said. About 60 percent of them have been returned as undeliverable.
"It's not a perfect system," Hauter said, "but you can expect that after 25 years some of those folks would have moved or died."
While the commissioners expect to save money in the long term with the closing, they have never figured just what the actual amount would be , Wagner said.
"We knew we would take some lumps somewhere down the line," Distel said. "This is a big lump right off the bat."
The commissioners also plan on installing a recorded phone message at the public defenders' phone number informing clients of the office's closure.
The matter of where to keep the public defenders' case files also has been resolved. The files will be stored in a locked room in the County Services Building. The commissioners are considering leaving the key in the custody of the county auditor, with a court order required for access to the files, although that decision has not been made.