LA County Public Defender
Since his appointment in 2018, Ricardo D. García has transformed the Los Angeles County Public Defender’s Office—the nation’s oldest and largest—into a modern, client-centered, and community-focused institution. As the first Latino to lead the department in its 110-year history, García has championed an ambitious strategic restructuring of the office, focused on aligning services regionally and expanding holistic, culturally responsive legal defense.
Under his leadership, the Department has implemented its first comprehensive strategic plan in more than two decades and launched a historic digital transformation. This included digitizing over 160 million records and leveraging AI-powered tools to streamline document and video analysis, making public defense more efficient, secure, and accessible. García also created the Department’s first Communications Division to reshape public narratives around justice reform and elevate the work of public defenders—locally and nationally—through targeted outreach, including in multilingual and underrepresented communities.
García has overseen the creation and growth of groundbreaking programs that redefine indigent defense in Los Angeles County and in the nation. He was instrumental in launching award-winning initiatives such as the partnership with Partners for Justice, and the launches of the Rapid Diversion Program, Community Outreach Court and the Neurocognitive Disorders Team—each designed to center client voice, integrate community support, and improve outcomes beyond the courtroom. He has also significantly expanded the Department’s social work infrastructure, embedding social workers across courtrooms and in jails to address underlying issues driving justice system involvement, such as mental health, housing instability, and substance use.
García’s transformational vision for indigent defense is deeply rooted in decades of frontline experience. He began his legal career in 1995 at the San Diego Public Defender’s Office before joining their Alternate Public Defender’s Office as its youngest felony litigator. He later served as Criminal Justice Director at the ACLU of Southern California, where he led oversight of Los Angeles County jails and the LAPD’s Rampart scandal reforms. Returning to trial work, he joined an elite homicide litigation unit and gained national recognition for securing a life verdict in San Diego’s most complex capital case. These experiences—spanning litigation, policy, supervision, and education—shaped García’s holistic, justice-oriented approach to leadership and innovation in the public defense space.
Born in Los Angeles to immigrant parents from Mexico, García is a first-generation college and law school graduate. He holds a B.A. in Politics from UC Santa Cruz and a J.D. from UC Berkeley School of Law. He continues to teach and mentor future public defenders as an adjunct professor and faculty member for legal training programs. He also speaks widely on justice reform and provides leadership training to legal professionals and public service leaders both locally and nationally.
García currently serves as President of the Los Angeles County Management Council and sits on several boards, including the California Public Defenders Association and the Berkeley Law Alumni Association.
He is a visionary leader in public defense and a tireless advocate for systemic change rooted in equity, dignity, and community empowerment.
