Office of the State Public Defender - California

The Office of the State Public Defender was created by the California Legislature in 1976 to represent indigent criminal defendants on appeal. Since 1990, OSPDs mandate has been to exclusively focus on death penalty cases. We litigate these cases on appeal in the California Supreme Court and in the United States Supreme Court on certiorari petitions. The work of the office is often at the cutting edge of criminal law. We frequently appear in the California Supreme Court and have represented men and women on death row in the United States Supreme Court in a half dozen cases where certiorari review was granted. We have been responsible for major developments in the areas of capital litigation, due process, right to counsel, confessions, jury selection, search and seizure, sentencing, and many other issues. The office prides itself on the diversity of its lawyers and is striving to preserve and improve upon that diversity. OSPDs Outreach Directory has become a model for the State of ...