Natrona County is looking for a new deputy county attorney.

John Chambers, who was hired this summer, will leave his part-time post by the end of January to devote his time to his growing private practice, he said last week.

"They wanted a full-time position," Chambers said. "That wasn't possible for me because of the workload. I wanted to give my clients the attention they deserve."

Chambers replaced former deputy county attorney Kim Corey, who went to work for the state public defender's office in early 2007.

During his short tenure, he worked on private road issues, workers' compensation, employee and personnel issues, drafting policies, licensing, insurance, and involuntary commitments, he said.

Most of Chambers' private practice deals with civil matters such as family law and contract reviews, he added.

Natrona County needs a full-time deputy attorney and is advertising for the position, County Attorney Eric Nelson said.

Unlike most counties in Wyoming, Natrona County's attorney deals with civil matters and does not prosecute crimes. Natrona and Laramie counties have state-funded district attorneys offices for that job.

Nelson, who started his job in March, complimented Chambers' work.

"He's done a really good job for us," Nelson said. "We're sad to see him go."

Besides a deputy attorney, the county also is advertising for a new director of its development department, he said.

Former department director Patsy Horton, who sounded the alarm about safety issues at Alcova Reservoir in 2006, resigned unexpectedly in October.

Neither she nor county officials would comment about the reasons for her resignation.

Reach Tom Morton at (307) 266-0592, or at Tom.Morton@trib.com.