Hinds County public defender asks for $350,000 to address staffing, detention crisis

Hinds County Public Defender Gail Wright Lowery asked the Hinds County Board of Supervisors on Monday to approve a $350,000 equity adjustment to raise starting pay for assistant public defenders to parity with one county-funded assistant district attorney, saying the move is needed to avert a constitutional crisis.

Lowery told supervisors that assistant public defenders in Hinds County earn, on average, more than $50,000 less than their prosecutor counterparts. She said her office has averaged two staff vacancies since she took office in 2020 and has seen nearly 20 attorney resignations during her tenure.

Lowery said the staffing shortages have intensified since the Mississippi Legislature added a fifth circuit court judge in Hinds County last year, increasing criminal dockets and workloads. She said the Raymond Detention Center is at “emergency” levels and that a recent review cited by her office found people jailed for months without an indictment, including several held more than a year.

Lowery said the $350,000 request is an emergency equity adjustment and that more than $1 million would be required to reach full pay parity with the district attorney’s office. She also urged supervisors to consider that investing in public defense can reduce costs associated with prolonged pretrial detention and help keep people working and caring for families, citing studies she said support that view.

Lowery, who has served as public defender for the 7th Circuit Court District of Hinds County since February 2020, said private philanthropic support recently allowed her office to hire two client advocates who have helped clients remain in their communities. She said approving the pay adjustment would aid recruitment and retention and help ensure accused people receive effective representation, a right she described as constitutionally guaranteed.

Source: Original Article