For the first time in decades, Minnesota’s public defenders are now being paid as much as prosecutors and it’s resulting in droves of county attorneys pivoting to public defense.
The Minnesota Legislature over the summer approved a dramatic pay increase for public defenders. Since then, two elected county attorneys have joined public defender offices and 21 assistant county attorneys followed suit, said Robert Small, director of the Minnesota County Attorneys Association. Recruitment and retention challenges because of pay and dwindling applicant pools, especially in greater Minnesota, predate the historic pay raise, but Small said those issues seem exacerbated.
Small said he knows one full-time prosecutor who left to make $60,000 more as a public defender. A growing number of counties are trying to stay competitive in response. Job openings on the county attorney association’s website lists 25 positions and several tout a new pay scale and hiring incentive.
The McLeod County Board in December approved a massive salary boost of 43% for its top prosecutors, leaping from $136,000 to $195,000. Commissioners acknowledged the county has lagged in wages for years, but that disparity is greater now.
“It’s going to be a leap-frogging situation,” said Bob Kolstad, union steward for public defenders in Hennepin County. “They are trying to catch up with us and we’re trying to catch up with them.”
Pendulum swing
Bill Ward, chief public defender for Minnesota, said since the new salaries went into effect in August, they’ve hired nearly 70 full-time attorneys. A new starting salary is $80,000.
“Let’s face it, it was a kick in the face that they weren’t making the same as the people prosecuting their clients,” he said. “Our folks are happy with what they got, but they should have gotten this 10 years ago. ... We really wouldn’t have the seesaw effect had we been funded where we should have been for a long, long time.”
The pay raise has opened the door for the return of former public defenders who previously couldn’t afford to stay.