Falsely charged with a crime, no way to fight it: inside Oregon’s court crisis

Corshelle Jenkins, whose life was upended after a case of mistaken identity prolonged by lack of a public defender, at home in Portland. Photograph: Amanda Lucier for the GuardianView image in fullscreenCorshelle Jenkins, whose life was upended after a case of mistaken identity prolonged by lack of a public defender, at home in Portland. Photograph: Amanda Lucier for the GuardianOregonFalsely charged with a crime, no way to fight it: inside Oregon’s court crisisAn attorney shortage has left thousands trapped in criminal cases without lawyers. One wrongfully accused woman had no choice but to waitSam Levin in Portland, Oregon with photographs by Amanda LucierTue 28 Apr 2026 07.00 EDTLast modified on Tue 28 Apr 2026 07.03 EDTSharePrefer the Guardian on GoogleCorshelle Jenkins was charged with a crime she didn’t commit – and now, there was a warrant for her arrest.In May 2025, the 36-year-old Portland resident received a letter saying she had been arrested for theft, and after failing to appear in court, police were instructed to take her to jail. The mother of six was stunned. She had never been arrested for stealing. She assumed a visit to court would prove it was a case of mistaken identity.But in court, a judge told her the state had no lawyers available to represent her. She would have to keep returning for appearances until one freed up. That day, roughly 1,280 other defendants in her county were also waiting for attorneys. Some had gone months – or more than a year – without representation.The charges would remain pending, and Jenkins had no way to fight them.Jenkins is one of thousands of Oregonians charged with crimes who have been forced to wait long-term for a public defender, lawyers the state is constitutionally mandated to provide to defendants if they can’t pay for their own attorney. The shortage has pushed the legal system to the brink.Trapped in a byzantine court process, some people with outstanding charges and no representation have lost jobs, housing and custody of their children, and some have suffered health crises like relapses and miscarriages in the process, the Guardian found.In a sign of the magnitude of the crisis, the Oregon supreme court ruled in February that the state must dismiss all charges for people who have waited 90 days or more for a lawyer in felony cases and 60 days in misdemeanor cases. The ruling called for more than 1,400 pending cases to be dropped.Still, for many defendants in the state, the problems aren’t over. People who saw their case dismissed because of the supreme court decision could be charged again for the same offense. They may only learn of the fresh prosecution when a police officer arrests them on a warrant and sends them to jail.And people newly entering the court system are still facing long delays in getting attorneys due to the shortage, with roughly 1,180 defendants statewide currently waiting for a lawyer.“It really makes you angry. This wasn’t me. I didn’t do it,” said Jenkins. “But all I could do was just wait for an attorney.”‘I want to prove this isn’t me’On a recent evening in east Portland, Jenkins sat in her kitchen with her smiley three-month-old daughter on her lap. Her four other kids blasted television and ran circles around her as she recounted her surprise prosecution.After receiving the warrant last spring, Jenkins learned the district attorney of Multnomah county, which includes Portland, had charged her with an August 2023 theft. A police report said she…

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