County public defender urged to get more realistic

Luzerne County commissioners say they have informed Public Defender Al Flora that there’s no way they can accommodate his request for 27 additional employees, so they’ve asked him to submit a new request with his most pressing needs.

“We told him what he requested is something that can’t be attained right out of the gate. He has to come back with a request on his immediate needs and why they have to be addressed immediately,” said Commissioner Chairwoman Maryanne Petrilla.

Flora was also asked to project a staffing plan over the next six months and year, she said.

Commissioner Thomas Cooney said he is awaiting Flora’s implementation schedule.

“While Public Defender Flora has a lot of good arguments toward additional staff, the county can’t address all the personnel recommended in his report at this time,” Cooney said.

Minority Commissioner Stephen A. Urban said he has many concerns about Flora’s staffing request and is not prepared to grant any additional staff at this time.

“His staffing right now is comparable to what other counties have,” Urban said.

The request for 27 new people would nearly double the size of the public defender’s staff.

The office currently has 29 employees and three vacant positions. That includes 21 assistant public defenders, five clerks, two investigators and four management positions, according to county records. The county administration has been comparing Luzerne County’s public defender staff size to other similarly sized counties.

The county spends $3.68 per resident on salaries and benefits for Public Defender’s Office employees, according to the county’s analysis.

That’s about the same or more than spending in six other third-class counties, according to the analysis. The results: Berks, $3.99; York, $3.87; Lancaster, $3.96; Lackawanna, $3.61; Lehigh, $3.90; and Erie, $2.98.

Dauphin County, which is also a third-class ranking, spends $7.10 per resident, according to the county.

All three Luzerne County commissioners want to explore the possibility of making more part-time assistant public defenders full-time to reduce the need to create additional positions.

The office has six full-time and 15 part-time assistants. The part-timers must work 1,000 hours a year.

According to the county’s analysis, six of the other counties have more full-time assistant public defenders. The number of full-timers: Berks, 26; York, 21; Dauphin, 29; Lancaster, 27; Lehigh, 14; and Erie, nine. Lackawanna has four full-time assistant public defenders.

Flora, who was hired as chief public defender in May, has cautioned against putting too much emphasis on what’s happening in other counties, saying their offices may be “substandard.” He has said his request was based on what is needed to meet national standards and provide effective representation to low-income clients.

County officials have denied a formal request to release Flora’s 60-page staffing report, arguing that the document is not a public record.