Nueces County district attorney asks commissioners for $610,000 in attorney raises, outlines $1.58M total ask with benefits

District Attorney Stanek told the Nueces County commissioners on the second day of the budget workshop that a sustained prosecutor shortage has left the office understaffed and raised costs across the criminal justice system. Stanek said the office is currently operating well below its target—about 26 to 27 prosecutors working against an authorized complement of 40—and has lost several lawyers recently to higher-paying positions.

Stanek said the office's request for fiscal-year salary changes would raise starting and mid-level pay to better match surrounding counties and recruiting markets. The proposal calls for an overall $610,000 increase for attorneys (an average raise of about $15,000 per attorney, before benefits) and about $400,000 in additional pay for support staff, including six attorney-assistant positions and one chief investigator position. Stanek said the reclassification and new positions are intended to reduce attorney turnover, shorten case-processing time, and reduce county jail costs over time.

The district attorney and misdemeanor chief William Cafarada showed a simplified pay schedule the office would use: a misdemeanor attorney starting around $82,000, felony starting salaries near $90,000, mid-level pay at $100,000 and senior attorneys at $110,000, with two complex-crimes slots created by converting existing positions rather than adding slots. Stanek said the office is not asking for more total attorney slots beyond 40; rather, it seeks to regrade and align pay so that the office can attract and keep more experienced prosecutors.

Stanek and staff said the office has calculated the county-level cost of the proposal both before and after fringe benefits. The $610,000 and $400,000 figures are presented as base salary increases; when fringe and benefits are included the office's estimate rises to about $1.578 million. Stanek noted the state recently increased some state-employed prosecutor pay and argued the county needs to act to avoid further losses to other employers who can pay better.

The DA's presentation emphasized system-level impacts: Stanek said understaffing creates bottlenecks that affect jail population and case disposition speed, and argued that a more fully staffed, properly paid office would reduce long-term county costs (for example by keeping jail days and outside counsel costs down). He asked commissioners to consider the request as an investment to reduce overall criminal justice costs.

Commissioners asked follow-up questions about head count, whether the request included benefits and how the office would be restructured; Stanek said the proposal keeps the total slots at 40 and converts two felony slots to complex-crimes roles to create specialized capacity. The presentation did not include any formal action or vote by the court during the session.

Stanek said the office is seeking a combination of reclassification and targeted new hires to get to the requested staffing and suggested the commissioners consider the multi-year grant step-down timetable for related public-defense funding when weighing county contributions. He also described outreach efforts to recruit at law schools and to simplify job descriptions to make hiring more competitive.