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Judgeless budget puts a strain on local courts By CHRIS BRISTOL For the past five years, Jackson County judges have handled more cases per judge than any other county court in the state of Oregon. And they will continue to do so. Thanks to a number of factors that dismayed jurists -- described mainly as a combination of petty partisan infighting, inexperience and just plain indifference -- the 1999 Legislature failed to budget a single new judgeship for the state over the next two years. Nowhere will it be felt more than in Jackson County, which has the highest backlog of civil cases in the state despite its groundbreaking Family Law program and ranks No. 1 and No. 3 on a judicial wish list backed by the state Supreme Court. "It's too bad for the citizens of Jackson County and the state as a whole that we could not have a Legislature that was more interested in getting the job done and less interested in political battle," groused presiding Jackson County Judge Ross Davis. The Legislature adjourned Saturday on its 195th day -- the third-longest session in state history and one marred by philosophical clashes between leaders of the Republican majority and veto-happy Gov. John Kitzhaber, a Democrat and former Senate president. Among their achievements, lawmakers boosted their own budget 21 percent. Despite lack of courtrooms, Davis and other Jackson County officials say the need for at least one new judge is acute and immediate. Heading into the session, they were confident lawmakers would recognize that need. In 1997, Jackson County's seven judges completed 2,111 cases per judge. By contrast, the average for the entire state was 1,439 -- 32 percent fewer cases per judge. Court Administrator Jim Adams said the county has the longest delay in civil litigation in Oregon -- 696 days to trial on average, vs. 401 days for the state -- and the second longest delay in domestic cases such as divorce and custody hearings. The growing backlog exceeds the Rogue Valley's booming population growth and threatens to undermine a major shift in the philosophy of community justice from output to outcome. The linchpin is Jackson County's landmark Family Law program, which has attracted national attention as a focused approach to intervention. "Even though we're processing the most cases in Oregon, we're still falling behind," Adams said. Davis, who joined forces with Chief Justice Wallace Carson to personally lobby legislators last weekend, worries how the mounting caseload will affect the Family Law program. "Good government is not just simply how many cases you get done in a week, but how well you get them done," he said. "We are at the point now that it's a very fine line between judges pushing cases out the door without giving them the fullest consideration possible." The last time the Legislature funded a new judge for the county was in 1995 -- the first addition in more than 20 years. Meanwhile, the county's population of 170,000 is forecast to exceed 200,000 by 2010. Adams said he and his colleagues will continue to press for action. The next Legislature will meet two years from now. "I can assure you," he said, "in 2001 we will be back." Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA