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Public defender seeks a third attorney as caseload and pretrial rules raise workload
Summary
Chief Public Defender Will Fox and county judges described higher workloads after pretrial reforms; the public defender office seeks an additional attorney and is pursuing federal and state reimbursements to offset county costs.
Chief Public Defender Will Fox introduced himself to the board and outlined the office’s staffing and grant picture. "My name is Will Fox. I'm the chief public defender here," he said, and described a recent federal grant application to fund law clerks and portions of staff salaries. Fox told the board he and his assistant currently handle the bulk of cases and that he is seeking an additional attorney to handle the heavier caseload created by pretrial changes.
Judicial and county staff explained how state reimbursement under the Fair Act is intended to shift more of the chief public defender's salary to the state; county officials said that mechanism will reduce local burden over time. Fox presented caseload numbers: roughly 602 criminal and juvenile filings (averaged) and about 382 appointed cases per year; he said adding an attorney would help manage daily court duties and weekend on‑call responsibilities that expanded under pretrial fairness rules.
County officials also discussed past budget reductions they implemented and one‑time grant uses that helped cover transitional overlap after retirements. The board asked for more precise cost figures and how grant and reimbursement streams would offset any new county position; the public defender and judge said they would produce supporting documentation.
