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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCriminal Justice Jul 8 2025Whatcom County Council Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360)778-5010 Committee Minutes - Final Tuesday, July 8, 2025 10:50 AM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers HYBRID MEETING - MAY BEGIN EARLY - ADJOURNS BY 12:00 P.M. (PARTICIPATE IN -PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010) COUNCILMEMBERS Barry Buchanan Tyler Byrd Jon Scanlon CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Cathy Halka, AICP, CMC Council Criminal Justice and Public Committee Minutes - Final July 8, 2025 Safety Committee Call To Order Roll Call Committee Chair Barry Buchanan called the meeting to order at 10:40 a.m. in a hybrid meeting. Present: 3 - Barry Buchanan, Tyler Byrd, and Jon Scanlon Also Present: Todd Donovan, Ben Elenbaas, Kaylee Galloway, and Mark Stremler Announcements Suecial Presentation 1. AB2025-483 Report from the Superior Court Clerk's Office Raylene King, Superior Court Clerk, read from a presentation (on file), on the staff and roles of the Superior Court Clerk's Office. Ryan Swinburnson, lead Class A Attorney for the Superior Court Conflict Office, spoke about the work of this new department, how it has saved the County money by handling felony cases in-house as opposed to having to pay for outside counsel, and how it has also been a benefit to those seeking counsel. King spoke about improvements and accomplishments of the Clerk's Office and answered questions about fees associated with court facilitators and form packets, what they look for when they hire for a court clerk position, and how the expected rise in the number of filings for water adjudication might impact the civil and criminal sides of Superior Court. She stated their request to the State for a third clerk was denied, which will slow the adjudication process down, so they are working on a budget supplemental to try to get more staffing. She answered whether the Conflict Office is subject to the same new caseload standards as the Public Defender's Office and how they are preparing for that, and stated the Conflict Office is essentially a second Public Defender's Office so she will be working together with the Public Defender and the Administration to make sure they are able to handle the increased caseload. This agenda item was REPORTED. AB2025-484 Presentation by the Incarceration Prevention & Reduction Task Force Co -Chairs of the 2025 Annual Report Buchanan introduced the presentation and spoke about the breadth of the function of this advisory body compared to other Council advisory boards, Wha(com County Page 1 Council Criminal Justice and Public Committee Minutes - Final July S, 2025 Safety Committee and that it spans across the whole criminal justice system. He stated this report highlights the things they have done throughout the year and how they have benefitted the criminal justice system. The following Incarceration Prevention and Reduction Task Force (IPRTF) co-chairs reported: • Heather Flaherty • Peter Frazier They spoke about a history of the task force, what they are doing right now and the benefit they bring to the county, their progress in realigning their agendas and goals with the implementation plan, and the three priorities they are currently focusing on (smart design and operation of the jail and behavioral care center, strengthening and expansion of upstream diversion and crisis response services and understanding what is working and what is not, and increasing data about outcomes in order to measure progress and promote accountability as well as to guide policy). Buchanan spoke about the work of alignment. Donovan asked about potential needs for additional funding as noted on page 27 of the report (on file) and how much it is the responsibility of the Council to find the funding. He spoke about Medicaid dollars going away, and that the Council could be blindsided by the effects of that if they do not start talking about it now. Flaherty stated a lot of people (the task force, Finance Advisory Board, Council, and Executive's Office) need to be involved in creating the answer to that and she spoke about the questions that need to be answered in those financial considerations. Buchanan stated there are lot of variables and it is a moving target, so it is something the task force has got to be continually dealing with. Flaherty spoke about the need for the structure to be nimble since crime rates can go up and down, and Frazier stated they have an agenda item in an upcoming IPRTF meeting on funding financing so they can all get on the same page. Scanlon spoke about the concerns around the potential impacts of Medicaid cuts, and stated he would be interested in advice and recommendations from "arcom County Page 2 Council Criminal Justice and Public Committee Minutes - Final July 8, 2025 Safety Committee the task force on budget and policies to help with diversion, and on what should be on the county's legislative agenda. Frazier answered whether that is something the task force can take on, and stated he thinks that is something the IPRTF should be doing since they are a policy body and are here to help the Council. Scanlon spoke about using councilmembers as a resource for State legislative advocacy. This agenda item was REPORTED. Committee Discussion and Recommendation to Council 1. AB2025479 Discussion and request for motion regarding draft Justice Project Stakeholder Group Charters Donovan stated that, reading the changes, he felt they were responsive to his concerns which he voiced at the last meeting. Scanlon stated he is interested in getting advice from the Incarceration Prevention and Reduction Task Force on budget and diversion (see discussion on A132025-489) and asked if there is anything they need from Council regarding their authority to provide that. Buchanan spoke about the proposed charters and stated he believes this plan has been looked at by three different committees. Kayla Schott-Bresler, Executive's Office, stated the IPRTF co-chairs gave some feedback about how the IPRTF is reflected in the charters. Buchanan moved that the SUBSTITUTE charters be RECOMMENDED FOR APPROVAL. The motion carried by the following vote: Aye: 2 - Buchanan, and Scanlon Nay: 0 Abstain: 1 - Byrd Items Added by Revision There were no agenda items added by revision. Other Business There was no other business. Adjournment Whalcom County Page 3 Council Criminal Justice and Public Committee Minutes - Final Safety Committee The meeting adjourned at 11:55 a.m. ATTEST: -� �t co o° i Ca Ijy HalkqTC ngi C l+ k O . WHATCOM COUNTY COUNCIL WHATCOM COUNTY, WA July 8, 2025 Barry Buchanan -via email 7/24/2025 Meeting Minutes prepared by Kristi Felbinger Whalcom County Page 4 Barry Buchanan, Committee Chair