Mike Reed, left, and John Hall review documents at a Kosciusko County Public Defender Board meeting Thursday, Feb. 13. InkFreeNews photo by Madison Hart.

By Madison Hart
InkFreeNews

WARSAW — The Kosciusko County Public Defender Board set a timeline for hiring the county’s first chief public defender, advancing plans to establish a new public defender’s office.

At a meeting on Thursday, Feb. 13, the board decided to set an application deadline for Feb. 28 for the chief public defender position. So far, three candidates have applied. Board members agreed on a time to conduct interviews during the first week of March.

The board aims to select a candidate by the end of March to allow the new hire three months to prepare for the office’s opening on July 1. During this period, the chief public defender would recruit staff, coordinate with county officials and set up operations.

The board debated what compensation the chief public defender should receive during the three-month preparation period, even though case assignments would not begin until the office’s official opening.

“I don’t think it would be fair to expect the new chief public defender to handle all of that (preparation) without getting paid. But I don’t know what the pay would be,” said Judge Mike Reed.

Members suggested consulting with Derrick Mason, executive director of the Indiana Public Defender Commission, to determine if the cost for this preparatory work would be reimbursable under state guidelines. They also discussed using the supplemental fund to cover the salary if needed.

The board also reviewed updates to the office’s comprehensive plan, which had “non-substantive” changes in order to ensure compliance with the commission rules.

The next Public Defender Board meeting is at noon Thursday, May 8.