District Court's `Cattle-Call' Day Wasteful Scene -- Badly Managed Process Needs Quick Adjustment, Critics Insist

It was "cattle call" Monday.

That's the term used by law-enforcement people to describe the day each month when jury trials begin in district courts. Normally crowded, last Monday's calendar in one of those courts was bedlam.

A record 167 jury trials were scheduled in Burien's tiny Southwest District Court. The 50 police officers and state troopers subpoenaed to testify spilled out of three courtrooms, choked hallways and, in the words of one witness, were practically "hanging out the windows."

Most officers weren't working a scheduled shift and received an automatic minimum four hours of overtime pay, or roughly $120 each. Those on regular shifts who had court dates were not replaced on the street.

But not one case went to trial Monday.

That translated into more than 6,000 taxpayer dollars in wasted law-enforcement subpoenas for a single day.

The three King County prosecutors - all of whom had worked in the court less than a week, and only one of whom has passed the bar (the other two are interns) - dismissed approximately 28 cases and reduced charges or postponed the majority of others to next month's calendar.

Officers say the majority of cases were not discussed with them.

These included approximately 60 drunken-driving cases, half of which were reduced to negligent driving. The remainder were postponed.

Southwest handles misdemeanor cases from south of the Seattle city limits to just north of Federal Way. During the entire "jury week," only three jury trials were actually held.

And the only ones smiling were defense attorneys.

"Thousands of police hours wasted, just wasted," said county police officer Pierre Thiry, a 22-year traffic veteran whose 11 drunken-driving cases were either reduced or postponed.

What happened in Southwest District Court last week is an extreme example of problems plaguing district courts throughout the metropolitan region, according to dozens of law-enforcement and criminal-justice employees interviewed.

Some blame the King County prosecutor - who determines the number of subpoenas issued for a particular day - but even officials at the prosecutor's office have expressed frustration over the subpoena system in memos dating back to 1991. Dennis O'Leary, who heads the prosecutor's district-court unit, admitted the system is flawed and said he would like to see it improved.

But it's not the prosecutor's responsibility alone: Some blame poor scheduling by the court administration, while others say lax judges triple the caseloads by postponing trials for frivolous reasons. What may cause problems is that no one agency is held accountable for efficiency - each court is its own kingdom.

Southwest, South Snohomish County and Aukeen - where overburdened prosecutors have been reduced to tears in the courtroom - are the most frequent offenders, according to those interviewed, while Renton District Court received praise for minimizing waste of time and money. Bellevue District Court is revamping its system to reduce subpoenas.

The State Patrol estimates troopers in King County alone average 1,000 hours each month in court. Yet they may testify in only a handful of actual trials.

"The overtime alone could one day bankrupt cities and counties," said State Patrol Capt. Tim Erickson. "And when the officers are in court, who's protecting the citizens of this state?"

Seattle Police patrol officer Mel Britt estimates that his presence is not needed 75 percent of the time he's subpoenaed.

Wednesday was typical. He went to court on an auto-theft case, only to find it had been dismissed. He didn't mind the automatic overtime pay, but did say that frequent days like these are difficult on his family.

Thiry recalls being subpoenaed while on a fishing trip two years ago, even though he'd notified the court of his vacation. But if he didn't show, his five drunken-driving cases would be dismissed. Still in hip-wader boots, with fishing lures dangling from his vest, Thiry rushed into Southwest court, only to have all his cases postponed anyway.

This year, the subpoena-control division of King County police - which alerted officers when they would not be needed for trial - was eliminated.

Some defense attorneys say they like to get in on the so-called "cattle calls," because their clients stand a good chance of having their cases dismissed or reduced for no reason other than that the prosecutor doesn't have enough time to review them properly.

Thiry wrote a three-page memo to his lieutenant regarding a situation he termed bedlam. Several State Patrol and Port of Seattle police present Monday have made written or verbal complaints to their superiors.

Gary Utigard, the county's presiding district court judge, said that "everyone is concerned about cost" and that police, prosecutors, judges and court staff need to develop a strategy.

The following solutions have been suggested:

-- Hire experienced prosecutors and give them adequate time to screen cases ahead of jury week so that only those ready would be set for trial. That would reduce the number of officers subpoenaed.

-- Experiment. In Bellevue, new court administrator Alex Harris is moving the first jury day to Friday. No officers will be subpoenaed for that day, but prosecutors and defense attorneys will meet to screen out cases unlikely to go to trial. Officers will have a weekend's notice about whether they have to show up. This method has worked well in Thurston County for five years.

-- Grant fewer postponements. Court records indicate some drunken-driving cases have stretched over two years, with judges allowing at least six postponements for a defendant saying he can't find a lawyer. That translates into a half-dozen subpoenas for the arresting officer. Renton District Court is repeatedly praised by law enforcement for refusing frivolous requests to put off cases.