Lawrence County Council Approves Chief Public Defenders Proposal

(LAWRENCE CO.) – After the risk of losing reimbursement from the Indiana Public Defender Commission the Lawrence County Council and Public Defenders Agency worked diligently over the last month to find a solution to the problem.

The proposal, Chief Public Defender Bruce Andis submitted, includes the hiring of an investigator and a social worker for the agency. The proposal will also fill two public defender positions. They will be paid $65,759 each.

According to Lawrence County Council members this would add an additional $103,850 to the public defenders budget.

Jeff Lytton

“We want to thank the judges of Lawrence County for coming to our meeting last week and explaining to us the need for this service,” said Lawrence County Council member Jeff Lytton.

Lawrence County is reimbursed 40 percent of the cost of public defenders in 2020 – a total of $313,586.

Bruce Andis

“I want to thank the Lawrence County Council for all the work on this and finally arriving at a solution to this issue,” said Bruce Andis Chief Public Defender.

The salary ordinance will also have to be amended to reflect the changes.