Benito Servando Marquez, left, and Jonathan Robert Adamson, right, make their first appearances in Lewis County Superior Court last year in Chehalis.
The Lewis County Prosecutor’s Office has recorded an 8 percent increase in felony cases from this time last year, with more cases posing the possibility of more trials and their related expenses.
2018 was the first year since 2004 that had more than 1,000 felony cases filed, Lewis County Prosecutor Jonathan Meyer said in a previous interview. He added more recently that 2018 saw a steady, consistent increase in filings. Two months into 2019, that trend hasn’t stopped.
Meyer and a contingent from the prosecutor’s office met with the Board of Lewis County Commissioners Tuesday afternoon and talked about a number of ongoing business and matters the office faces, among them trial costs. Meyer said when considering potential trial costs he looks at the number of filings, and an increase represents an increase in potential trials.
The largest possible trial looming is that of Jonathon Adamson, 21, who’s facing 10 counts in the death of Randle teen Benjamin Eastman III.
“We’re anticipating that (trial) will last one month,” said Meyer to the commissioners. “Obviously there will be some expenses that go with that. The good news is that most of our witnesses are local, and so there shouldn’t be a whole lot of expenses that go with that.”
He added later: “Indigent defense costs will be obviously high. … I expect this will be tens of thousands of dollars, especially when you talk about a month-long trial. I always figure that if I’m in trial for a month, I’m prepping for at least six weeks outside of trial. That’s a lot to go through.”
According to the contract for adult criminal cases requiring indigent defense, attorneys in class B and C felonies are paid in $700 units, with units referring to: “all stages of trial including pre-trial assignment, omnibus hearing, routine CrR 3.5 hearing, plea of guilty, sentencing, and motion for order of indigency on appeal. … Each day of trial including if the defendant pleads guilty or fails to appear on any day of trial. … Cases transferred into Mental Health Alternative program for ongoing review hearings, to be billed an extra unit at entry of judgment and sentence.”
The contract states that indigent defense receives $100 per hour on class A felony cases.
Jurors receive a $15 daily stipend and mileage reimbursement. Any experts or witnesses who aren’t local are reimbursed for travel costs, said Meyer.
A day of jury selection can rack up a bill of $1,500, since a pool of potential jurors are all brought in for the day. Adamson’s trial would likely bring in a larger pool than normal, said Meyer, since it’s likely going to be harder to find unbiased jurors for such high-profile case.
On Monday, Dec. 31, 2018, the prosecutor’s office filed its last case of the year, bringing the final tally to 1,046 cases.
In September there had been a 40 percent increase in felony cases since September 2015, 37 percent since that same time in 2016 and 18 percent since 2017.
