Congresswoman Bonamici introduces $250 million bill to address public defender shortage

 U.S. Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici has introduced legislation aimed at tackling sprawling public defender shortages in Oregon and nationwide. The bill, titled the Ensuring Quality Access To Legal Defense Act or "EQUAL" Defense Act for short, would spread $250 million in federal grant money across the country.

"I really want to make sure that our criminal justice system is working as it should and right now sadly, it's not," said Bonamici, who represents Oregon's 1st Congressional District. "And we've seen that particularly recently in Multnomah County where criminal cases had to be dismissed because with this right to counsel they can't prosecute a case."