Hays County Commissioner’s Court approves to pursue new Public Defender’s Office

Sierra Martin | Managing Editor

HAYS COUNTY – On Tuesday, March 30 the Hays County Commissioner’s Court unanimously approved to pursue a Public Defender’s Office (PDO) in Hays County. The court agreed to move forward with the application process to receive grants for the PDO. Additionally, Commissioner’s discussed the employment and duties of the Hays County Administrative Assistant and Chief of Staff positions during the executive session.

Last week, the Hays County jail dashboard was introduced which showed that 80% of the county’s jail population is being held pretrial.

Christine Terrell spoke to the court in support of approving the PDO and asked Commissioners to aim for beginning at a 50% caseload.

“We have far too many people sitting in our county jail for far too long,” Terrell said. “Many for infractions far too insignificant to warrant the $3,000 plus a month it costs to detain them. It’s a sad fact that Hays County has one of the slowest district court systems in the entire state. Meaning that people linger in our jails much longer than necessary, costing them jobs and relationships and costing taxpayers untold millions.”

Shannon Fitzpatrick, a former Hays County Prosecutor and Criminal Defense Attorney, spoke to the Commissioner’s Court about how vital a Public Defenders Office is for the county.

“A professional well-managed public defender’s office is critical for Hays County,” Fitzpatrick said. “It is supported by the data; it’s supported by the DA’s office and it’s supported by the neighboring cities who have found it transformative in their communities. In short, the time has come to fully fund such an office.”

The Commissioner’s Court will write a letter of intent to the Texas Indigent Defense Commission (TIDC) by the May 7 grant application deadline. TIDC funds, oversees and improves public defense throughout the state of Texas.