Ryan Swinburnson, a defense attorney and Blaine School Board president, announced his bid for Whatcom County prosecutor this week in hopes of leading reform in the Whatcom County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.
The defense lawyer, who has a background in criminal prosecution and civil litigation, said watching what he believed to be weak leadership in the prosecutor’s office play out in the courtroom motivated him to run.
“Defense attorneys should not be winning as much as we do here,” Swinburnson said. “And when we do win, that needs to be communicated back to law enforcement.”
Whatcom County Prosecutor Eric Richey did not respond to an emailed request on whether he plans to run for re-election. Richey was elected in 2018 and 2022.
Public Disclosure Commission filings show Swinburnson will challenge three higher-ups in the Whatcom County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office: Dona Bracke, assistant chief criminal deputy prosecutor; Erik Sigmar, chief criminal deputy prosecutor; and Jesse Corkern, senior civil deputy prosecutor.
Swinburnson grew up in Blaine, where his great-grandfather graduated Blaine High School in 1917. He earned his law degree from Willamette University in Salem, Oregon, in 1999 and began his career as a prosecutor in Albany, Oregon.
He then pursued civil and criminal litigation in the Tri-Cities before switching to public defense in 2004. During part of his time as a public defender in Washington, Swinburnson also served as attorney for Morrow County in Oregon. In 2020, Swinburnson moved back to Whatcom County and ran Swin Law, a DUI and criminal defense firm in Bellingham. Since January 2024, he has served as deputy director of the Whatcom County Assigned Counsel Office, which represents defendants unable to be represented by a public defender.
Shortly after returning, Swinburnson said he noticed problems in the prosecutor’s office. There was limited communication with other county departments, an unresolved COVID-19 case backlog and high turnover of felony prosecutors, he said. Newer prosecutors who were trying their best were also being assigned to felony cases in superior court with little guidance.
“Those are the violent crimes that matter most to our community,” Swinburnson said. “If they’re being prosecuted poorly, that’s the failings of the office.”
Whatcom County candidates will officially file for office during filing week, May 4-11. The attorneys will run in the Aug. 4 primary election, with the top two candidates moving on to the Nov. 3 general election.
Swinburnson said his leadership and diverse background prepared him to run the prosecutor’s office.
“All people, whether they're the accused or victims, or general citizens, they have to have trust in the office,” Swinburnson said. “If we don’t have trust in the office from all points of view, then the rest of the county loses.”
Swinburnson has served Blaine School Board since 2024, and his director position expires Dec. of 2029. If elected as prosecutor, he said he would step down from the school board.
This article was updated on April 16 to correct Ryan Swinburnson's current role as deputy director of the Whatcom County Assigned Counsel Office.
