Hennepin County Attorney details justice initiatives and requests 4.9% budget increase; highlights victim services, ERPO coordination and youth programs

Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty presented the office—s portion of the law, safety and justice budget and described an expanded mix of prosecution, civil services and community-facing programs that, she said, serve residents and county departments.

The budget and the office: Moriarty told the board the office employs more than 500 staff and received more than 10,000 criminal-case referrals this year. The proposed 2026 operating budget shows a 4.9% increase driven primarily by salary and benefit costs; Moriarty said the office will use vacancy-holding, network-storage reductions and curtailed contract and travel spending to help meet budget targets.

Victim support and trauma-informed response: Moriarty highlighted the county attorney—s victim-witness and domestic-abuse teams, noting those staff provided trauma-informed support after a high-profile local mass shooting. "They were on the scene shortly after this happened," Moriarty said of the victim-services staff, adding the teams provided daily support at family and neighborhood centers.

ERPOs and community outreach: The office described a targeted effort to coordinate and train law enforcement on extreme risk protection orders (ERPOs, sometimes called red-flag orders). Moriarty said her office hired dedicated staff to coordinate ERPO filings and community outreach, and that the county has developed a toolkit and public materials to increase awareness of the civil remedy.

Immigrant victim protections and U/T visas: Moriarty said the office has expanded proactive certification work for U and T visas (immigration relief available to certain crime victims) and increased outreach to immigrant communities so victims know services are available and can be certified where appropriate.

Prevention, youth and restorative practices: The county attorney described the "be-at-school" truancy interventions and a youth auto-theft early-intervention program that embeds social workers in schools and uses referrals from law enforcement to link young people and families to services before behaviors escalate. Moriarty also said the office is expanding restorative-practices work for youth and planning to adapt those practices for adults in the coming year.

Civil work and litigation monitoring: Moriarty described the civil division—s role advising county departments on governance and litigation. In the current year the civil team has also been heavily involved in reviewing federal funding terms and responding to emerging legal challenges; county administration staff told commissioners that the county attorney—s office has led proactive legal review and interdepartmental coordination of grant and funding risks.

Budget trade-offs: Moriarty said about 87% of the office budget is personnel-related, which limits flexibility. To meet the proposed budget target the office is holding additional positions vacant, using fund balances and reducing nonessential spending. She said civil-division workload has grown as county operations have expanded and that three civil attorneys authorized in 2025 will be budgeted in 2026.

Next steps and follow-up: Commissioners asked for trend data on case referrals, clearer metrics for "be-at-school" outcomes and details on ERPO use and effectiveness. Moriarty said the office will provide additional data and a public toolkit to increase ERPO awareness in communities as part of its rollout.