Portland observer., May 18, 2022, Page 6, Image 6

Page 6
May 18, 2022
Housing Grants Target Needs
Oregon Public
Federal
Defender System Sued investments made
(AP) — Criminal defendants in Ore-
gon who have gone without legal repre-
sentation for long periods of time amid a
critical shortage of public defense attor-
neys filed a lawsuit Monday that alleges
the state violated their constitutional
right to legal counsel and a speedy trial.
The complaint, which seeks class-ac-
tion status, was filed as state lawmakers
and the Oregon Office of Public Defense
Services struggle to address the huge
shortage of public defenders statewide.
The crisis has led to the dismissal of
dozens of cases and left an estimated 500
defendants statewide — including sever-
al dozen in custody on serious felonies
— without legal representation. Crime
victims are also impacted because cases
are taking longer to reach resolution, a
delay that experts say extends their trau-
ma, weakens evidence and erodes con-
fidence in the justice system, especially
among low-income and minority groups.
“There is a public defense crisis rag-
ing across this country,” said Jason D.
Williamson, executive director of the
Center on Race, Inequality, and the Law
at New York University School of Law,
who helped prepare the filing. “But Or-
egon is among only a handful of states
that is now entirely depriving people of
their constitutional right to counsel on
a daily basis, leaving countless indigent
defendants without
access to an attorney
/
for months at a time.”
The lawsuit specifically names Gov.
Kate Brown and Stephen Singer, the
recently appointed executive director
of the state’s public defense agency,
and asks for a court injunction order-
ing criminal defendants to be released
if they can’t be provided with an attor-
ney in a reasonable period of time. The
lawsuit doesn’t specify what would be
considered “reasonable.”
Oregon’s system to provide attorneys
for criminal defendants who can’t afford
them was underfunded and understaffed
before COVID-19, but a significant
slowdown in court activity during the
pandemic pushed it to a breaking point.
A backlog of cases is flooding the courts
and defendants routinely are arraigned
and then have their hearing dates post-
poned up to two months in the hopes a
public defender will be available later.
A report by the American Bar Associ-
ation released in January found Oregon
has 31% of the public defenders it needs.
Every existing attorney would have to
work more than 26 hours a day during
the work week to cover the caseload, the
authors said.
The Oregon complaint focuses on
four plaintiffs who have been without
Continued on Page 16
to address crisis
Oregon will be receiving $71 million
in federal grants from the Department
of Housing and Urban Development to
tackle various housing issues around the
state, Oregon Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff
Merkley announced Monday.
“Housing is a human right, and these
federal resources will help to make that
right a reality for Oregonians needing
a floor under their feet and a roof over
their heads,” said Wyden, author of the
Decent, Affordable, Safe Housing for All
(DASH) Act.
The monies allocated are good step
forward to help provide affordable hous-
ing statewide, Wyden said, but he in-
dicated there’s more to be done and he
promised to continue pushing for an even
greater response to the housing crisis.
The Community Planning Develop-
ment awards include nearly $35 million
for Community Development Block
Grants to build and secure decent hous-
ing and suitable living environments, and
by expanding economic opportunities,
principally for low- and moderate-in-
come persons.
The funding includes nearly $20 mil-
lion for the HOME Investment Partner-
ships Program which provides grants for
building housing, buying, and/or reha-
bilitating affordable housing for rent or
U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden
homeownership or providing direct rent-
al assistance to low-income people.
Another $10 million was allocated
for the Housing Trust Fund, giving lo-
cal governments monies to exclusively
produce and preserve affordable housing
for extremely low and very low-income
households; and another $2.5 million for
the Housing Opportunities for Persons
With AIDS program which provides sta-
ble and permanent housing assistance
and supportive services to one of the
most vulnerable populations – low-in-
come people living with Human Immu-
nodeficiency Virus (HIV).
In addition, nearly $3 million was
awarded to the state’s Emergency Solu-
tions Grant program, providing support
for first responders helping people in a
housing crisis and engaging with people
living on the streets.
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