Is crime really out of control and Tri-Cities courts are turning loose criminals, as some suggest?

The answer is not black and white, but there are concerns. On Thursday, Feb. 20, the Columbia Basin Badger Club will hold an online forum featuring two of the leading law enforcement figures in our community.

Kennewick Police Chief Chris Guerrero and Benton County Prosecutor Eric Eisinger will be our speakers for the hour-long program on Zoom, which will include a Q&A session and be followed by an open-mic “Table Talk” discussion.

Guerrero has been with KPD since 1996, rising through the ranks to become police chief in 2022. Eisinger had a 21-year legal career before he was elected Benton prosecutor in 2022. They’re on the front lines.

We’ll hear a very mixed situation. Overall crime and arrests are down significantly in Benton and Franklin counties — and nationwide — since 1995. That’s true for both violent and nonviolent crimes.

Yet statistics also show conviction rates have declined, and some crimes have increased. And costly changes are potentially coming to the judicial system that could make things worse.

Here’s a few statistics, according to bentonfranklintrends.org.

In 2023, the violent crime rate per 1,000 residents for the two counties was 2.8. That’s down substantially from a rate of 3.7 in 1995, and it’s better than the statewide rate of 3.6 and the national rate of 3.3.

For property crimes, the bicounty rate was 24.5 per 1,000 in 2023, compared with 41.4 in 1997.

The statewide rate was 29.9 per 1,000 residents in 2023, compared with 41.3 in 1997.

Drug crimes are way down — to a rate of 0.1 per 1,000 in 2023 from 7.8 in 2006 — partly due to marijuana being legalized in 2012.

Sexual assault and domestic violence rates, however, have shown increases. Homicide rates fluctuate substantially year-to-year because of the smaller numbers.

Meanwhile, the court system has faced challenges, with the rate of felony cases filed that result in a conviction dropping from 76.5 percent in 2005 to 65.4 percent in 2022.

Eisinger warns it could get worse because of new rules that would significantly decrease the number of cases public defenders can carry. He believes the new rules, if not changed, could have “catastrophic” effects on public safety and trust in law enforcement.

For years, state law and Bar Association rules limited public defense attorneys to 150 felony cases and 400 misdemeanor cases in a year. The new rule being considered by the state Supreme Court would reduce the felony caseload to just 47 by 2027 — a change intended to reduce public defender burnout.

Eisinger believes that would force prosecutors to reduce by perhaps 30 percent the number of cases filed and “threatens to effectively decriminalize nonviolent felony offenses due to a lack of attorneys.”

Finally, both police and prosecutors suffer from staff shortages. Kennewick’s police department experienced retirements during the pandemic and is still catching up. And Eisinger says there aren’t enough attorneys in the Tri-Cities, which he said has the smallest lawyer-to-population ratio of any urban center in Washington.

Join us for a program that poses provocative questions for law and order in our community. To register, visit www.columbiabasinbadgers.com.

Badger Club members can join free, nonmembers pay $5.