Welcome

The mission of the Washington State Office of Public Defense (OPD) is "to implement the constitutional and statutory guarantees of counsel and to ensure the effective and efficient delivery of indigent defense services funded by the state... ."  RCW 2.70.005.  Established by the Legislature in 1996, OPD is an independent agency of the judicial branch.

OPD administers indigent defense services in the following areas:

• Appellate Program
• Parents Representation Program
• RCW 71.09 Civil Commitment
• Extraordinary Criminal Justice Costs
• Public Defense Improvement Program
  • Indigency Screening
  • Washington Supreme Court's Standards for Indigent Defense
  • Chapter 10.101 RCW Public Defense Improvement Funds
  • Resources for Juvenile Defense Attorneys
  • Criminal Defense Training Academy

OPD cannot provide direct representation of clients, pursuant to RCW 2.70.020.

Featured News:

Regional Public Defense CLEs

OPD will host free, day-long CLEs designed for public defense attorneys representing clients in felony and misdemeanor cases. Register now for December 6 in Bellingham. Registration will soon be available for trainings in Yakima and Moses Lake in March, 2020. 

Indigent Appellate Transcript Rate Increase

The per-page rate for transcripts in indigent appeals increased July 1.  Please see OPD's official memorandum for more information.

Juvenile Defense Training Academy

2019 marks the third year of the JDTA – a four-day training program for aspiring and current juvenile defense attorneys. This year’s sessions will take place on April 26, 2019 in Winthrop, July 19-20 in Seattle, and August 23 at the Western State Hospital Child Study & Treatment Center in Lakewood. If you are unable to attend any of these sessions, you can attend a make-up session June 6-7 in Montana. Register to join the Academy at any time. Send your questions to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 

Graduates of the Academy are:

2018 Gradutates

• Katherine Hawkins (Asotin Co.)
• Michelle Hull (Yakima Co. and Kittitas Co.)
• Joseph Kuhlman (Spokane Co.)
• Margaret McGinty (King Co.)
• Paula Plumer (Skagit Co.)
• Kristin Timm (Snohomish Co.)
• Randall Hall (King Co.)
• James Womack (King Co.)

2017 Graduates

• Sharonda Amamilo (Thurston Co.)
• Trena Berton (Island Co.)
• Michael Borge (Clark Co.)
• Tirsa Butler (Mason Co.)
• Lawrence Delay (San Juan Co.)
• Krista Elliott (Spokane Co.)
• Patricia Fassett (Cowlitz Co.)
• Susan Goolsbee (Skagit Co.)
• Clarence Henderson (Pierce Co.)
• Amy Jones (Whatcom Co.)
• Amanda Kleespie (Grays Harbor Co.)
• Ashwin Kumar (King Co.)
• Megan Manlove (Spokane Co.)
• Robyn Martin (Thurston Co.)
• Michael Morris (King Co.)
• Alexandra Narvaez (King Co.)
• Kathy Prunty (Skagit Co.)
• Danielle Purcell (Benton Co. and Franklin Co.)

Tools for Implementing the Supreme Court's Standards for Indigent Defense

To assist in implementation of the Supreme Court Standards for Indigent Defense, OPD has developed a series of short web tutorials, an FAQ, sample caseload calculators, and a customizable Model Misdemeanor Case Weighting Policy .   Additional questions or requests for technical assistance can be sent to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..