County commission approves hiring freeze exceptions

St. Joseph County commissioners made an exception to the county’s hiring freeze and agreed Tuesday to fill the position of chief public defender. The $90,000-a-year position is required by the Michigan Indigent Defense Commission.

Its funding is paid through a grant from MIDC.

The chief public defender develops, implements, oversees and directs the county’s Public Defender Office, and the indigent-defense contract system.

County administrator Teresa Doehring said the position will be posted and she may seek the assistance of a recruiting firm in order to find a qualified candidate. She conceded it could be tough to fill because it is a niche position that requires legal expertise.

Also, commissioners agreed to Doehring’s request to hire a new executive assistant. The $60,000-a-year job will be expanded from its current workload of 35 hours a week to 40 hours weekly.

Incumbent Pat Kulikowski, who has held the position for nearly 34 years, is retiring next month.