First you will need a judge to appoint a lawyer for you. You may be expected to fill out a statement and provide proof to the court that you do not have enough income to hire a private lawyer.

For Juvenile & Civil Clients Only:

• Juvenile offender cases: All juveniles are presumed to not have the income to hire a private lawyer, so an attorney will automatically be appointed to represent you once charges have been filed. You will receive information about who your attorney is and they will reach out to you prior to your arraignment.
• Juvenile civil cases (truancy/ARY/CHINS): An attorney will be appointed to represent you if a party to your case is asking that the court find you in contempt. You will receive information about who your attorney is prior to your contempt hearing.
• Dependency cases: An attorney will be assigned to represent you at the initial shelter care hearing and will reach out to contact you prior to the hearing. You do not need to meet financial qualifications to have an attorney present at your shelter care hearing. To have a public defense attorney appointed to represent you for the remainder of your case, you will need to complete an indigency screening form to provide proof to the court that you do not have enough income to hire a private lawyer. Please complete THIS FORM, rather than TCPD’s online indigency screening form. Your attorney will be the same lawyer who was assigned to represent you at your shelter care hearing. If you do not know who your attorney is, contact us at (360) 754-4897 and ask to speak with the dependency attorney or paralegal.
• Involuntary Treatment Act cases: The facility you have been detained at will provide you with a form to complete to provide proof to the court that you do not have enough income to hire a private lawyer. Staff at the facility will provide the form to the court. Your attorney will contact you prior to your hearing.
• Child support enforcement cases: An attorney may be provided to you if the State is seeking to find you in contempt. The court will make an indigency screening form available for you to complete, to provide proof to the court that you do not have enough income to hire a private lawyer. If you qualify, our office will contact your regarding your lawyer.

​A bench warrant is issued by a judge when a person with a pending criminal case violates the rules of the court.  Most often, people with bench warrants simply have failed to show up for a scheduled court appearance. Once a bench warrant is issued, the police can treat it like any other warrant - and use it to arrest people and keep them in jail until they appear back in front of a judge.

Please contact our office if you have a bench warrant or have any questions.

​If you can’t work out your differences with your court-appointed lawyer, contact our office at (360) 754-4897  and request to speak with a supervising attorney or the director, Patrick O'Connor. You can also email our office by using the quick links under Department Attorneys on our home page.

If you are not satisfied with TCPD's response, you can file a formal complaint with:

Washington State Bar Association
1325 Fourth Ave., Suite 600
Seattle, WA 98101-2539
Toll-free: 800-945-WSBA (9722)

​Thurston County - Jail Roster Search

City of Olympia - Jail Roster Search

Nisqually Corrections - Jail Roster Search

Thurston County Sheriff's Office - Warrants Division

Thurston County - Juvenile Detention

If in custody, the prosecutor has 72 hours (3 business days) to file charges. The 72 hour rule does not apply when the person is released.

• The judge determines if there is Probable Cause (PC).
• The judge sets Conditions of Release, and the client either is released on personal recognizance (PR) or required to post bail.

• Client pleads "guilty" or "not guilty" (TCPD advises all clients to plead "not guilty" at this stage).
• The court schedules pretrial, omnibus, and trial dates.

• Lets the court know what the attorney and client are planning (Change of Plea, Trial, etc).