Pierce County (WA) Prosecutor Mark Lindquist is taking the debate over disclosure of his phone records to the Washington Supreme Court. In two briefings filed last week, attorneys representing the county and Lindquist asked the high court to review a Sept. 9 ruling by the state Court of Appeals.
The appeals court ruled that a lower court must examine Lindquist's personal phone records and text messages to determine whether any meet the standard for public disclosure. Appealing to the state's highest court delays that examination. The Supreme Court could accept Lindquist's petition ó lengthening the debate ó or reject it, theoretically triggering the lower court's examination of the phone records.
The appeal also means more public money spent defending Lindquist's position. The county has paid $253,449 to outside attorneys working on the case, according to billing records from the county's risk management division. The county's recent petition to the Supreme Court was written by Seattle attorney Phil Talmadge, a former Supreme Court justice who charges $375 per hour. Continue>>>
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