There was no chance to speak out about the contractor’s work.
By Moe K. Clark, InvestigateWest
Civil legal aid organisations in Washington are scrambling as a result of an unexpected cut to a tiny corner of the state budget.
The biannual budgets of the House and Senate presented by the legislators this year both included $5 million for legal aid organizations to help them in their efforts to overturn unconstitutional drug convictions throughout the state. After the reconciliation of both budgets in the final days before the end of the legislative sessions, funding disappeared. The state legislature presented its balanced budget of $77.8billions on April 27th, after many months’ debate and an expected $16billion budget deficit. Now the budget must be approved by Gov. Bob Ferguson, a Democrat from Massachusetts.
The funding has been a lifeline for The Way to Justice in Spokane, which relies on it since 2021. “The rug has been pulled out under us.”
Since 2022, three Washington legal aid and advocacy organizations—Civil Survival, Living with Conviction and The Way to Justice—have relied on state funding from the Office of Civil Legal Aid to help people vacate convictions on their criminal records that became constitutionally void after a 2021 Washington Supreme Court ruling known as State v. Blake.
Supreme Court ruled that Washington’s drug possession laws were unconstitutional, as they lacked the language relating to intent – the foundation of U.S. law. Washington’s simple drug possession law was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court because it lacked language relating to intent, which is central to U.S. legal system. A new law criminalizing drug possession, coined the “Blake-fix,” went into effect in July 2023.
However, the procedure to vacate cases does not happen automatically. Instead, it must take place in the court of conviction. Some courts are proactive and have identified and removed eligible cases. Others have let the affected individuals navigate through the complex system on their own. It’s here that legal aid organizations and reentry programs have stepped in to help fill the gap.
Civil Survival’s co-executive Director, Corey Guilmette said, “These convictions are not constitutional, and it is the duty of the state to compensate people for these unconstitutional judgments.” Cutting funding to the groups that do this work is unacceptable.
The cuts caught the Office of Civil Legal Aid—the state agency that has historically received the funding—by surprise.
Philippe Knab is the director of the reentry/eviction defence program at the Office. The contractors were not given any warning or opportunity to speak out in support of their work.
Guilmette stated that although the cut of $5 million from the Office of Civil Legal Aid is small compared with the budget of the entire state, it will have a huge impact on the organizations providing legal assistance that are run by shoestring budgets.
He added, “We will be cut by just over $1.1million of funding annually.” For an organization that has a budget of $2.7 million, this is close to 40% of the funding we had.
Guilmette says that with the recent cuts it will be difficult for them to represent clients effectively.
He stated, “I have no money left to pay for our employees after the 1st of July. We’re scrambling.”
It’s a long, way to go
These cuts are a result of State v. Blake There’s a way to go before all the eligible cases are vacated in the whole state. As of January 2025, the Washington State Patrol reported that about 18 percent—or 114,567—of the estimated 600,000 eligible cases identified by the Administrative Office of the Courts had been vacated statewide. Vacate can be a complicated and time-consuming process that varies from one court to another.
Guilmette reported that, in March, his organisation began representing almost 150 Blake-related new cases. That’s still just a tiny fraction. When his organization last opened the public intake form for its website, they received more than two years worth of Blake-related cases within only two months.
The team of Mr. Smith focuses specifically on helping his clients get reimbursed for the costs associated with their illegal convictions, such as attorney’s fees, costs for drug treatment and court costs.
The state has a process to administratively terminate cases in masse, but that doesn’t cover refunds. There is another state process for that called the Blake Refund Bureau, but for jurisdictions that aren’t taking a proactive approach to first vacate their cases—which is the first step in the process—legal aid organizations are necessary to help fill in the gaps.
Guilmette stated, “I know it is a tough budget year but the problem will not go away.” The state must, in some way, remove these convictions.
“We cannot just push it down the line,” he said. It will be harder to do this work because of the expertise which will soon disappear. In the end, it will be more expensive to perform this task.
He is most concerned about undocumented individuals who are convicted of unconstitutional offenses. These convictions could result in deportation.
He added, “I find that tragic. And I do not think the state can claim to be protecting immigrants if they are cutting resources knowingly.”
Katrin Johnson, the Washington Office of Public Defense’s deputy director of operations, stated that the office she works for helps in leading State v. Blake Budgets for the Office of Civil Legal Aid did not include the support of the three organisations that were previously supported by it. However, she stressed that the role of these organizations is crucial.
Johnson explained that they would have to regroup in order to figure out what to do. They will not be funded at the previous level. We don’t know if we can even fund them.
She hopes that the funding will be available to these organizations, given their unique roles. Johnson stated that the organizations are more in touch with local communities. We’re an agency of the state.
“Losing them in the crowd” Blake “Efforts is going to cause a major setback”, she said.
‘That feeling of justice’
David Anderson was able to get three out of four his cases dismissed under State v. Blake In 2024, he felt finally free. He had paid $20 a month since 2001 to cover his fines and court fees.
Anderson, 72, explained: “When we get out of prison and leave the system you are still strapped with financial obligations.” It’s the financial tie that keeps people going in and out.
He stopped receiving his court invoices in 2024. He was afraid he’d be arrested if he didn’t pay. The county court of Spokane informed him that his cases could be removed. State v. Blake—and potentially get his money refunded.
The court told him that they were overloaded with cases, and it could take some time before their case was reviewed. They referred him to The Way to Justice.
Legal aid helped him to complete all the paperwork necessary for three out of four cases that were eligible, and they removed them from his criminal history. He received in the post a refund from Washington three months after that. The rest of the debt was quickly eliminated.
In his living room he keeps the framed order to vacate and check, along with his art and photos of his 7 children and 14 grand-children. He donated $100 to The Way to Justice as a way to thank them for their hard work. Every chance he has, he shares the story with his neighbors and friends. State v. BlakeEven handing out flyers to those in your neighborhood who may be entitled to relief is a good idea.
Anderson stated, “I was sure I would have to wear that necklace for the rest my life.” If that clerk had not passed me the pamphlet I wouldn’t have known about it. Blake program.”
Zorrozua of The Way to Justice said that she is determined to continue doing what Blake Work despite funding cuts. The Martin Luther King Center, Spokane sponsored her organization initially as a fiscal sponsor. Zorrozua explained that they provided free office space for the organization in an old firehouse on South Hill which was converted into a daycare center.
It was the Blake She added, “The case gave us the funds and resources we needed to expand our efforts statewide.” This is another reason it hurts. Blake The Way to Justice has grown to be what it is today because of this door.”
It “stings”, she said, that the Governor. Ferguson’s request for $100 million from the state legislature to fund a program that would hire additional local law enforcement, but cut funding of $5 million allocated to Blake.
They’re building this apparatus to criminalize people and put them through it [criminal justice] “We are removing resources on the back-end of the system that will help us make the people whole,” said Ms. Addison.
Zorrozua says that she is motivated by the opportunity to work alongside people such as Anderson.
You can sense the relief and justice just from talking to David. It’s hard to describe, but it is obvious when it happens.
“He was historically caught up in the War on Drugs,” said she. “People were ignored, stereotyped and forgot. Then there’s the Blake Case brought us to reality. “We have an opportunity to put things right and humanize those who were affected.”
Moe K. Clark, a reporter for InvestigateWest who covers Washington’s criminal-justice system as well as other subjects, is an investigative journalist. Murrow News Fellowship supports Moe K. Clark’s work, which is funded by Washington State University and managed as a state journalism initiative.
This article was first published by InvestigateWest. A nonprofit newsroom dedicated exclusively to the practice of investigative journalism, it is a non-profit organization that aims to make a positive impact on society. Subscribe to their Watchdog Weekly Newsletter and receive articles like this in your mailbox.
Washington Lawmakers Refuse to Continue Efforts To Allow Adults Grow Marijuana In Their Homes