Title
AN ORDINANCE relating to the creation of protection order commissioner positions for King County superior court; amending Ordinance 16819, Section 2, as amended, and K.C.C. 2.69.040; and declaring an emergency.
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BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF KING COUNTY:
SECTION 1. Findings:
A. Ordinance 16819 approved the creation of criminal court commissioners, restricting criminal court commissioner appointments to existing authorized family law and mental health commissioners.
B. Ordinance 19383 authorized superior court to hire criminal commissioners solely for the purposes of the backlog reduction project and the State v. Blake, 197 Wn.2d 170 (2021), decision workload. The criminal commissioners authorized by Ordinance 19383 were in addition to the existing family law and mental health commissioner employees.
C. RCW 7.105.580 authorizes the superior court to appoint one or more attorneys to act as protection order commissioners, who may also be appointed to any other commissioner position authorized by law, provided that protection order commissioner positions are created with the consent of the county legislative authority.
D. Under current state law, there are six different types of protection orders codified separately to provide an order for protection for vulnerable adults and people experiencing domestic violence, harassment, sexual assault, stalking and other extreme risk. Petitions for relief under those protection orders are processed by judicial officers depending on their authority. Effective July 1, 2022, under a new chapter of state law, Chapter 215, Laws of Washington 2021, all protection orders will be consolidated and harmonized, along with judicial authority for commissioners to provide relief for all protection orders.
E. RCW 7.105.580 authorizes superior court to appoint attorneys to act as protection order commissioners and exercise all powers and perform all duties of an appointed court commissioner. That authority must b...
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