Douglas County is bringing in legal help to fight charges it illegally withheld public information after a chase involving Lawrence Police that ended in the death of a 56-year-old woman.

Dan Watkins will handle the county’s defense in a lawsuit filed by the Journal-World, county commissioners decided Wednesday. Watkins will charge $165 an hour, plus another $40 an hour for tasks handled by a paralegal or a law clerk.

The newspaper filed suit Sept. 16 after being denied access to recordings of emergency dispatch communications detailing the Aug. 26 chase. Nam Ouk Cho is charged with striking and killing Judith Vellucci at 31st Street and Nieder Road, as Cho fled from police.

The newspaper accuses the county of violating the Kansas Open Records Act. The county calls the communications a “criminal investigation record” that need not be made public.

The communications eventually were disclosed during a Sept. 16 court hearing.

The county usually would be represented by Evan Ice, county counselor, but Ice’s firm has handled previous legal work for the newspaper, county officials said, presenting a potential conflict of interest.