Two area representatives are among nine legislators who are calling on Governor Tony Evers to address the backlog of court cases in Brown County involving public defenders.
Senator Andre Jacque has signed the letter to the Governor, as has Representative Shae Sortwell, who explained that he was contacted by the State Public Defender’s office.
He explained that “Since the early part of last year when the coronavirus crisis became prevalent, the Brown County public defender’s office has seen a cumulative effect of cases continuing to come in, but not enough have been resolving to be able to continue making appointments. This has created a massive backlog of cases and has not been improving.”
The legislators are asking Governor Evers to use American Rescue Plan Act Funds to address the situation, which was brought on by the COVID pandemic.
They point to states like Vermont, where that exact action has helped them with the same issue.
