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Prosecutor's office warns of severe staffing shortfall; commissioners consider salary matrix changes
Summary
Prosecuting Attorney Jeff Sant told a workshop that the office faces a looming vacancy rate of roughly 50% in the criminal division and urged the board to consider salary‑matrix adjustments and other recruitment steps to retain and attract attorneys.
Prosecuting Attorney Jeff Sant told a county workshop Monday that Franklin County's prosecuting attorney's office is facing an acute staffing shortage in its criminal division and recommended the board consider changes to its salary matrix and other recruitment tools.
Sant said the office will approach roughly a 50% vacancy rate when a scheduled departure occurs in March and that additional departures earlier in 2024 and 2025 have already strained services. "I can't do the work that we have if I have 5 vacancies in the criminal division," Sant said, describing the operational limit for the office absent new hires or temporary contractors.
Nut graf: Sant and county staff outlined a two‑track approach: immediate measures to stop the most pressing losses and longer‑term salary and classification changes to make the office competitive with neighboring counties. The county has already used retention payments from ARPA funds for some roles and is exploring reworking the salary matrix to improve retention for prosecutors and chief deputies.
Details: Sant and county administrator Eric Johnson noted several recruitment avenues: contracting with interim attorneys for district court dockets, recruiting law students as rule‑9s (summer interns with limited practice rights), and sending staff to university recruiting events. Sant said trial preparation has become more time‑consuming because of digital evidence platforms (Axon/evidence.com) and larger evidence sets — in one recent murder case the office logged hundreds of evidence items — increasing the workload per case.
Policy and funding context: Commissioners and staff discussed broader state issues affecting recruitment, including a statewide shortage of attorneys and pending state legislative and litigation actions concerning indigent defense funding. Sant and others said state support for indigent defense and caseload standards remains a central variable for long‑term staffing and budget planning.
Next steps: Sant said the office will return to the board with formal proposals for matrix changes after consultations with the deputy prosecutors' guild and HR. County staff recommended reengaging the county Law and Justice Council and pursuing targeted recruitment, and they signaled that some adjustments for 2025 could be absorbed within currently vacant positions, though longer‑term funding would affect '26 and '27 budgets.
Ending: Commissioners acknowledged the problem's complexity and signaled willingness to discuss targeted pay and classification changes if they can be structured to stabilize staffing without creating untenable budgetary commitments.
