Chief Public Defender Bowden-Lewis subject of two investigations. Her lawyer accused Commission of “hyper-scrutinizing and undermining her decisions as a pretext for discrimination.” The letter that lit the fuse. Thanks members for their service.

Chief Public Defender TaShun Bowden-Lewis hired employment law firm Madsen, Prestley & Parenteau to accuse the Public Defender Services Commission of “hyper-scrutiny and undermining her decisions is a pretext for discrimination.” The bombshell accusations in the March 6th letterwere leveled against the Commission that appointed Bowden-Lewis to the top position in the state agency last year.

The letter, posted above, sets forth Bowden-Lewis’s grievances at the Commission’s oversight, as authorized by statute. Howard complains, “There has also been no movement on the Chief Public Defender’s expressed desire to create an External Affairs Unit to heighten visibility and support for public defenders.” The Commission, in the exercise of its authority, has declined to create a public relations unit for a public law firm that represents indigent defendants. The Commission and others believe the idea is an imprudent and unnecessary use of limited resources. Policy disagreements in government happen all the time and have nothing to do with discrimination.

Howard’s letter concludes with the information “that two separate investigations have been initiated against the Chief Public Defender, without any information provided to her, we ask that you share all documents concerning Ms. [Erin] Ryan’s complaint [against Bowden-Lewis], the investigation into Ms. Ryan’s complaint; the investigation into Leonie Campbell’s complaint; and preserve all evidence concerning these investigations.”

On Friday afternoon, Bowden-Lewis took a distinctly different tone in a statement sent to Daily Ructions by email. “Recent news stories have reported on the Division of Public Defender Services, including recent resignations from the Public Defender Services Commission,” she wrote. “I thank those former members for their service, and I am pleased that the Governor’s office intends to work with the other appointing authorities to ensure that the positions are filled.”

New members of the Commission may want to obtain written clarification of who will defend them in the event that Bowden-Lewis continues to make claims of normal policy decisions are a “pretext for discrimination.” Recollections may differ but members of the Commission were alarmed at the lack of support they received from other state agencies in response to the Howard letter, Daily Ructions has learned.

Published March 24, 2023.