Lacking lawyers, Plains states try new rural staffing tacks
OMAHA, Neb. — In Wheeler County, Nebraska, if you want a divorce, attorneys who can help you are nearly 50 miles away.
There’s only one attorney, James McNally, in the north-central county, and he is its sole prosecutor. He’s been there for 50 years and was at one point one of five attorneys. He has a side practice handling probate and estate services, but obviously can’t take criminal defense cases.
There’s a reason more lawyers don’t land in places like Wheeler County, one of 11 counties that have no attorneys outside of elected prosecutors, he said.