In August, the Clean Water Accountability Coalition and Mary Benham, a West Plains resident, filed a recall petition against Spokane County Commissioner Al French, alleging that he attempted to cover up PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) contamination that leaked into drinking water in the West Plains. However, Whitman County Superior Court Judge Gary Libey dismissed the recall petition on Sept. 26 and requested that Knoll Lowney, the coalition's attorney, disclose who covered the costs of his legal services to the Public Disclosure Commission by Oct. 31. In an emailed statement to media outlets, French called the recall efforts politically motivated. "Today's hearing exposed a purely political ploy by radical left activists, funded by dark money, to try to make Spokane County as radical as the City of Spokane," French stated. French is currently running for reelection and is facing Democrat Molly Marshall in the Nov. 5 general election. (VICTOR CORRAL MARTINEZ)
CONFLICT WITH RATES
Starting Oct. 1, the Idaho State Public Defender office will be responsible for providing all public defense for indigent defendants in the state. The Inlander previously reported that many North Idaho conflict public defenders and contract attorneys, collectively working on more than 1,000 cases, had stated that they'd withdraw from the state's pool of conflict attorneys and offload their cases due to financial concerns as the state takes over their contracts. A conflict public defender is contracted to represent individuals if there are conflicts of interest between attorneys or are multiple defendants involved in one case. On Sept. 18, the Idaho State Bar issued a formal ethics opinion, stating that public defenders can't withdraw from cases without a judge's approval. The opinion states that the courts have discretion to grant an attorney's motion to withdraw. Still, if a public defender asks not to take a case due to an apparent personal conflict of interest, such as a financial burden, the lawyer may still be required to represent the client. Kootenai County conflict and contract attorneys previously received $150 per hour, plus $50 per hour to pay for their support staff. Starting Oct. 1, they will be paid $100 per hour (and pay their support staff from that), with the exception that the lead counsel on capital cases will make $150 an hour. (VICTOR CORRAL MARTINEZ)
LOOMING LAYOFFS
Last Friday afternoon, the Spokane mayor's office announced that 29 city employees are at risk of being laid off by the end of the year due to budget constraints. The three departments that would be most affected are accounting, information technology and criminal justice, excluding the police and fire departments, says Erin Hut, the city's communication director. At the beginning of her administration, Mayor Lisa Brown identified a $25 million structural deficit in the city's general fund budget, Hut says. The city has taken multiple actions to decrease the deficit to roughly $10.9 million currently. The potential layoffs, which would save about $3.4 million, are one of a few efforts now being considered to reduce it further. Another consideration is Proposition 1, Brown's proposal on the November ballot to increase sales tax in the city by 0.1%. The "community safety" sales tax would generate roughly $6.5 million for the city's general fund. Those funds would mostly be dedicated to the police (potentially funding new hires) and fire departments, as well as the Office of the Police Ombuds and Municipal Court, but along with other strategies, could also help stabilize the general fund. (ELIZA BILLINGHAM) ♦
