Proposal Could Lead To Layoffs Judges Working On Takeover Of Probation Department

Layoffs can be expected if District Court judges complete a proposed takeover of the Spokane County probation department, officials said Monday.

The nine judges agreed last week to manage the department because they think it can be done cheaper, presiding Judge Daniel Maggs said.

The move still requires approval by Spokane County commissioners but already has caught one manager in the crossfire.

Arthur DeFelice, a county employee, had managed the department for nearly three years before stepping down last week. He began work Monday as a probation officer in the juvenile department.

DeFelice said the judges want to cut $500,000 from the $1.3 million annual budget and he feared his job would be eliminated, so he latched onto the juvenile job.

Sources inside and outside District Court said some judges were unhappy with DeFelice’s management style and wanted him gone.

County Commissioner Steve Hasson said he is “very suspicious” of the proposed reorganization and fears it could lead to a “flurry of union grievances.”

District Court and the prosecutor’s office are the only county departments that have not signed a master union contract, Hasson said.

He said one way to cut costs would be to get rid of employees or hire non-union workers at less pay.

“Finally, the commissioners have a halfway decent working relationship with (the union),” Hasson said. “I will not let it happen until this whole union thing is resolved.”

Hasson also suggested District Court might be targeting the probation department to increase its workload and allow it to argue the need for another judge.

“Usually if they want something from us like this, then there’s an angle to it,” Hasson said. “This is not a ‘From the bottom of our heart we will generously assume this burden.”’

Gary Oberg, county director of corrections and social services, said the District Court plan was prompted when the city of Spokane objected to the rising costs of a county contract for probation services.

The city had been paying the county $159,000 a year. The county wants to increase that to $400,000 annually to cover indirect costs never charged, such as rent, computers and electricity. It’s all part of the county’s financial belt-tightening.

The county probation department has 27 workers, some of whom will lose their jobs unless they can be transferred, Oberg said.

“There is no question there is money that can be saved in a downsizing,” Oberg said. “If you were to downsize, you would eliminate positions. The judges believe they can.”

Maggs noted the matter is far from settled and said he could not discuss specifics.

Spokane County is one of only three counties in Washington state that manages its probation department with commissioners instead of judges, so there is a historical precedent for the move, officials said.

, DataTimes