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Public defender wins one-year extension of indigent defense grant; county to fund part-time advocate, mental-health attorney and Westlaw AI subscriptions
Summary
The county accepted a one-year extension of an indigent defense grant that adds $99,066; the public defender asked to retain a part-time social services advocate, a mental-health attorney, provide a retention bonus, and buy Westlaw Precision subscriptions for staff.
The Lebanon County Board of Commissioners approved an extended grant allocation to the county’s public defender’s office that adds $99,066 and authorizes several personnel and software expenditures for calendar year 2026.
Chief Public Defender Megan Sitwell told commissioners the indigent defense fund, previously set to run through Dec. 31, 2025, will be extended to Dec. 31, 2026, with an additional $99,066 allocated to the county. Sitwell asked the board to approve continued funding for a part-time social services advocate, a mental-health attorney, retention pay for an additional secretary, and subscriptions to an AI-assisted legal research tool.
Sitwell summarized the requested allocations: retain the part-time social services advocate at a projected 2026 cost of $31,213.12; retain a part-time mental-health attorney at $51,578.28; provide a $3,610 retention bonus for a fourth secretary (matching bonuses already approved for three secretaries); and purchase Westlaw Precision subscriptions (an AI-assisted research add-on) for six to seven attorneys at a cost of $12,664.60. She said if a seventh subscription is needed the additional roughly $2,500 would come from her office supplies line.
Sitwell said she had coordinated with the union regarding the retention bonus and that the union had approved bonuses for the three secretaries previously covered by the grant; she asked the board to approve the fourth secretary receiving the same retention payment. She also told the board the Westlaw Precision tool integrates with the law office’s existing Westlaw account and is intended to provide AI-assisted legal research to avoid hiring additional attorneys.
Commissioners moved and approved the request. The public defender’s office and county staff will reflect the extended grant funds in the 2026 budget; Sitwell confirmed the items would be in the next budget year and not drawn from the 2025 operating budget.
The board did not tie the grant extension to additional county matching funds; Sitwell described the award as an allocation of state grant funds to the county for indigent defense services. For further details about contract language or a grant agreement, contact the public defender’s office.
