The Marseglia-Harvie Transition Committee has announced the appointment of Joe Khan as solicitor and Ann Russavage-Faust as chief public defender for Bucks County.
They will assume their new roles beginning Jan. 6, following the Bucks County Commissioners’ inauguration.
Khan, a former county and federal prosecutor, is currently a public interest attorney with Langer, Grogan & Diver P.C., where he represents county, municipal and state governments in affirmative civil litigation.
He is also a member of the adjunct faculty at the University of Pennsylvania Law School and a fellow at Litigation Counsel of America, which awarded him with the Peter Perlman Service Award in 2018.
Since 1988, Russavage-Faust has served as the county’s Administrative Deputy Public Defender.
“After more than 30 years in the Public Defender’s Office, Ann knows and understands the innerworkings of the office,” Commissioner Diane Ellis-Marseglia said. “She is a natural fit as our Chief Public Defender, and we are excited to welcome her in this new role.”
In addition to her administrative duties, Russavage-Faust wrote briefs and argued numerous appellate cases, including death penalty appeals. She also served as a trial attorney for a multitude of major felony, misdemeanor and death penalty trials.
She graduated with a Juris Doctor degree in 1986 from Dickinson School of Law, where she was a member of the International Law Journal. Russavage-Faust graduated Magna Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from Duke University in 1983.
Regarding Kahn, Ellis-Marseglia said, “We are thrilled to have someone with Joe’s reputation, expertise and principles leading our legal team. Joe’s background, experience and values align perfectly with our vision for transparency, ethics and excellence in county governance.”
Before entering private practice, Khan served for a decade as an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, where he prosecuted cases across southeastern Pennsylvania and led the historic City Hall corruption probes in Allentown and Reading. He began his career prosecuting sexual assault, child abuse and domestic violence in the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office.
Khan is frequently cited as an expert on legal issues and recently advised Delaware County’s transition team on criminal justice. The Northeast Philadelphia native is active with several nonprofit boards and civic groups and currently leads the boards of directors for Smith Memorial Playground & Playhouse and LEAD PA.
Khan is a member of Gov. Tom Wolf’s Advisory Commission on Asian and Pacific American Affairs. He graduated from the University of Chicago Law School with a Juris Doctor degree in 2000 and from Swarthmore College with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1997.
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