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Commissioners Roger Nyquist, Sherrie Sprenger and Will Tucker agreed Tuesday morning, May 30, that Linn County would join Marion County to request changes regarding how long criminal defendants can be held at the Oregon State Hospital in Salem.

Last September, a federal judge ruled that defendants could not be housed at the hospital for more than one year. This decision also meant that those with misdemeanor charges couldn’t stay, either, as those services had to be provided at the county level.

According to a letter to Gov. Tina Kotek and David Baden, interim director of the Oregon Healt...