Former public defender disbarred, accused of enriching self at poor clients' expense

By Ken Armstrong
Seattle Times staff reporter

KEN LAMBERT / THE SEATTLE TIMES Grant County attorney Thomas J. Earl traveled to Olympia in February for his disciplinary hearing before the Washington State Supreme Court. Over the years, Earl's income for public-defense work climbed from $40,000 to $80,000 to six figures.

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The Washington Supreme Court has ordered the disbarment of Thomas J. Earl, a former Grant County public defender accused of enriching himself at the expense of the poor.

A courthouse fixture in the Central Washington county, Earl was accused by the Washington State Bar Association of soliciting money from indigent defendants he was supposed to represent for free.

Earl defended thousands of accused felons in 18 years of public-defense work and previously handled or farmed out all court-appointed work in Grant County Superior Court under a $500,000-a-year contract.

But a Seattle Times investigation published last month, "The Empty Promise of an Equal Defense," showed that Earl repeatedly failed court-appointed clients.

By carrying a crushing caseload that eclipsed limits recommended by bar groups, Earl maximized his income while leaving little time for each client. Over the years, his income for public-defense work climbed from $40,000 to $80,000 to six figures. In 2002, he retained about $255,000 after paying other public defenders, The Seattle Times found.

Seattle Times investigation Read "The Empty Promise of an Equal Defense."

The state bar, which is charged with policing lawyer conduct, accused Earl of asking indigent clients to pay several thousand dollars for work already paid for by the county. Last year, a hearing officer concluded that Earl accepted private fees in three court-appointed cases, and that he committed other kinds of misconduct in another five cases.

On Thursday, the Washington Supreme Court ordered that Earl, 49, be stripped permanently of his law license. His disbarment is to take effect next Thursday.

Earl now works for Canfield & Associates, which is headquartered in Ephrata, the Grant County seat. Canfield & Associates organizes insurance pools and handles claims for numerous school districts, cities and counties in Washington. The company's Web site lists Earl as a "litigation specialist."

Earl could not be reached for comment yesterday.

In February, the Supreme Court suspended Earl's license pending a decision on disbarment. A week later, Grant County terminated its public-defense contract with him.

Earl's caseload was so large — he handled 413 felony cases in 2003 alone, according to court records — that the county's judges subsequently ordered dozens of Grant County lawyers to help pick up the slack by representing indigent defendants.

Guidelines endorsed by the state bar say attorneys should handle no more than 150 felony cases a year.

In February, after Earl was suspended, he abandoned his fight to keep his license. He notified the bar that he was dropping his appeal to the Washington Supreme Court, writing, "I no longer desire to be a member of the Washington State Bar Association or practice law."

The state bar also has accused a second Grant County attorney, Guillermo Romero, of improperly soliciting money from court-appointed clients or their relatives.

Ken Armstrong: 206-464-3730 or karmstrong@seattletimes.com

Copyright © 2004 The Seattle Times Company

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