Prosecutor cuts office hours in response to budget cuts

Prosecutor Denis Tracy said crimes may begin to be prosecuted less vigorously if Whitman County’s budget woes continue.

Because of the county’s sagging revenue totals, Tracy’s 2010 budget is $21,902 below 2009. To cover that cost, Tracy’s office will be open to the public two hours less per day during 2010 than it was in 2009.

Tracy told the Gazette Tuesday the reduction in hours is a result of leaving a receptionist position unfilled.

“We have fewer people in the prosecutor’s office, but we do not have fewer cases,” Tracy said in a statement released Monday morning. “While this will inevitably lead to a reduction in the service we provide to the public and a slowing of the criminal justice system, we will do our best to keep the interference to a minimum.”

Tracy said immediate effects from the closure will be inconveniences to the public in accessing the office.

Tracy’s office will be open from 9 a.m. to noon and 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Last year the office was open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. During the hours of closure, the prosecutor’s telephone lines will be directed to voice mail.

He cautioned, though, that if staffing levels continue to deteriorate or if case loads increase dramatically, his office may decide not to prosecute less serious offenses as agressively.

“It’s not uncommon in good times or in bad times for me to decline to prosecute a case based on my discretion that the facts do not merit the use of the prosecutor’s resources,” he said.

With one less employee in the prosecutor’s office, staff and attorneys will have to adjust their work loads to cover more duties, whether answering telephones, consulting with victims or researching cases.

Tracy said that means his office will not be able to process criminal or civil cases in as speedy or as thorough a manner as they have in past years.

“Overall, it’s going to be inefficient,” said Tracy. “We won’t lose cases because of the changes, but it will make them more difficult to prosecute.”