Registration is now open for WDA’s 2019 Defender Conference: Game Changing Strategies for Public Defenders, on April 26 & 27. This year’s conference will take place once again at Sun Mountain Lodge in Winthrop, Washington. We encourage you to make your plans now to attend. Sun Mountain Lodge has limited capacity, however there are quite a few other options in the Winthrop area. And don’t forget–if you’d really like to stay at the lodge, try to get on the waiting list as a back up to your confirmed accommodations, as some rooms will open up closer to the conference. Click here for information about Sun Mountain Lodge.

WDA’s 2019 Defender Conference will focus on race and mental health as two areas in which enhanced advocacy and skills can help fight the over incarceration of our indigent clients. Racial bias contributes to the growing number of incarcerated people, and defenders represent a disproportionate percentage of people of color. We will examine how defenders can deploy the law and race-related data to achieve more just outcomes for all of their clients. In addition we will focus on building legal knowledge and client focused skills for representing people living with mental illness. We are also pleased to partner with the Washington State Office of Public Defense (OPD) to present the Juvenile Training Academy.  Finally, there will be sessions on advocating for reduced LFOs and for non-citizen clients. 9.5 total CLE credits have been requested from the WSBA for this program. For a full schedule, click here. This year, we will also be holding a Pre-Conference Leadership Development Program on April 25 and 26. For more information on that program, click here.