News & Events

Deputy Federal Public Defender Dinah Manning has accepted an appointment as the Director of Public Safety: Accountability & Oversight with the City of Los Angeles Controller’s Office. From the L.A. City Controller’s office: Dinah Manning is a proud first-generation Salvadoran-American and African-American who hails from South Central Los Angeles. She is passionate about fighting for a safe, just, and dignified life for all Angelenos. As a career public defender, she has devoted her efforts to fighting against the devastation the criminal legal system inflicts on […]..

Governor Gavin Newsom today announced the appointment of Gia Kim, a Deputy Federal Public Defender with the Federal Public Defender’s Office for the Central District of California, as Los Angeles County Superior Court judge. Gia Kim, 48, of Los Angeles, has been appointed to serve as a Judge in the Los Angeles County Superior Court. She has served as a Deputy Federal Public Defender at the Federal Public Defender’s Office, Central District of California since 2008, where she worked as a Research and Writing Attorney […]..

Federal Public and Community Defenders applaud the historic nomination of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to serve as the next Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court. Judge Jackson is an exceptionally well-qualified nominee whose appointment will advance our country towards a fairer and more equitable system. Of the 115 justices who have served on the Supreme Court, she will not only be the first Black woman, but also the first to bring experience as a public defender. Federal Public and Community Defenders represent the […]..

Today the senior judges of Los Angeles County Superior Court elected Angel Navarro as a Court Commissioner. Commissioner Navarro served as an attorney with our office from 1992 to 2010, including as a Supervising Deputy Federal Public Defender...

President Biden today announced the next round of Judicial Nominees for the United States District Court, including former FPD-CDCA staff attorney – and now Magistrate Judge – Kiya Kato. Judge Kato served as an attorney with our office from 1997 to 2003. Judge Kenly Kiya Kato has served as a United States Magistrate Judge for the Central District of California since 2014. From 2004 to 2014, Judge Kato was a solo practitioner, representing clients in civil and criminal cases. From 2003 to 2004, Judge Kato […]..

Governor Gavin Newsom today announced the appointment of Patricia A. Young, a supervising attorney with the Federal Public Defender’s Office for the Central District of California, as Los Angeles County Superior Court judge. Patricia A. Young, 42, of Los Angeles, has been appointed to serve as a Judge in the Los Angeles County Superior Court. Young has been a Supervising Deputy Federal Public Defender at the Office of the Federal Public Defender, Central District of California since 2014, where she has served as a Deputy […]..

Published on October 7, 2021, by the United States Courts Judiciary News. Cuauhtemoc Ortega grew up in the working-class neighborhood of La Puente in Los Angeles County, where people he knew sometimes struggled through negative encounters with law enforcement and immigration officials. Now, he leads the Federal Public Defender’s Office representing La Puente and the greater Los Angeles area. “In our clients, I see myself, my family, my friends, and my neighbors,” Ortega said. “Being able to show our clients compassion is critical in gaining […]..

Congratulations Cuauhtemoc Ortega, the Federal Public Defender for the Central District of California, for being named to the Daily Journal’s Top 100 2021 list!..

Our Los Angeles Trial Chief, David Sutton, will start as the new Marin County Public Defender on October 4, 2021. The Marin County Public Defender news release is below. Marin County Hires New Public Defender San Rafael, CA – David Joseph Sutton began his legal career with the Marin County Public Defender’s Office, and now he is the choice to lead that department. County Administrator Matthew Hymel said a nationwide recruitment process concluded with the recommendation of Sutton, who has served as Trial Chief for the Office […]..

We are excited to announce that former FPD-CDCA Supervising Attorney Yasmin Cader has been selected to lead the ACLU’s Trone Center for Justice and Equality. The official announcement is below, courtesy of the ACLU. The American Civil Liberties Union announced today that Yasmin Cader will lead the Trone Center for Justice and Equality, effective September 15. For nearly three decades, Cader’s career as a public defender and civil rights attorney has kept her on the front lines of the national struggle for racial and criminal […]..