County attorney's office reports 25 active dependency and neglect cases, seeks paralegal to manage filings

An assistant county attorney told the Board of County Commissioners the county attorney's office has taken on increasing responsibilities and is coordinating with the district attorney's office and courthouse to streamline processes.

The assistant county attorney said the office currently "has about 25 active cases, and these are primarily dependency and neglect for child welfare cases," and noted these matters are "quasi adversarial" with extensive coordination among counsel, guardian ad litems and county social-services staff. The speaker described case complexity, including therapy needs, transportation, subpoenas for records and medical witnesses.

The office reported it has filed "approximately 160 different filings on these 25 different cases" so far this year. The assistant county attorney said one attorney is dedicated to dependency-and-neglect work; the speaker and another assistant focus on transactional matters (contracts and leases) and litigation, and that outside counsel is used when matters require specialized expertise.

On staffing, the assistant county attorney said the county is "budgeting for a paralegal, and we are in the market for a paralegal," adding that paralegal support is needed for document management and to address the caseload and DHS-related filings.

Ending: The assistant county attorney asked commissioners to direct any detailed questions to the office and said staff would continue coordination with other agencies as casework proceeds.