MACHIAS — Washington County commissioners reviewed an alarming report Thursday from District Attorney Robert Granger as his office prepares for the February jury trial term.
Granger, the district attorney for Hancock and Washington counties, said the February term will be the last for Superior Court Justice Harold Stewart, who has served on the Washington County bench for several years, and no timeline has been set to name Stewart’s successor.
Without a firm calendar beyond February to schedule cases, Granger said he has urged Deputy District Attorney Toff Toffolon and Assistant District Attorney Paige Bebus to “take full advantage of the limited number of upcoming days in an attempt to fairly but quickly resolve as many of the backlogged cases on the docket as is feasible.”
In his report, Granger noted longstanding understaffing in his office, which has caused stress and long hours for clerical staff members.
“There is seldom a week where I am not aware that staff is working well past their assigned office departure times without compensation,” he said. “These employees are truly to be commended for their unheralded efforts to keep the prosecution ship afloat in very stormy seas.”
Pointing to the county’s financial problems, which are keeping him from filling an open position, Granger wrote, “I see no relief in sight for my staff.”
He also pointed out that the difficulty facing staff members “is that the defense bar knows of the upcoming uncertainty concerning judicial resources, and maximum delay generally works to the benefit of their clients.”
David Burns, chairman of the Washington County Commission, called the lack of availability of a judge “unacceptable.” He said Granger’s report “is ammunition as far as I’m concerned to go to Judiciary and fight to get a judge here.”
During her State of the Judiciary address Thursday, Chief Justice Valerie Stanfill of the Maine Supreme Judicial Court drew attention to the shortage of defense lawyers that has led to hundreds of cases across the state where defendants have not yet been appointed legal counsel, which is also contributing to the backlog of criminal cases.
In addition to the clerical staff Granger mentioned, the prosecutorial district is staffed with five assistant district attorneys and a detective, and has offices in Calais, Ellsworth and Machias.
This month, arraignments, motions, pleas and sentencings are scheduled for Feb. 17, 18, 19, 20 and 26.
