Santa Cruz County Office of the Public Defender

Join us in celebrating Public Defense Day, commemorating the Supreme Court ruling that declared every person facing criminal charges has the right to an attorney, regardless of their ability to pay. #GideonDay #PublicDefenseDay #ACR159 #PublicDefenders #EqualJustice #California

Congratulations to our lead immigration attorney, Ajla Azevedo-Husić, who was honored by our Board of Supervisors as a 2025 Santa Cruz County Employee of the Year in the Justice Category.

We are thrilled to co-sponsor the annual Prom Dress & Suit Drive. Together, we can make our youth's prom dreams come true!

The mission of the newly launched BRIDGE Foundation of Santa Cruz County is to provide material support to promote rehabilitation, recovery, and reentry for public defender clients. Spread the word, donate, or join the mailing list for an invitation to our Launch Party.

Our public defender team showed up in force, along with partner volunteers, to support our Removal Defense Collaborative's 3rd Countywide Asylum Clinic at the Watsonville office of the Public Defender. This is what it looks like to stand with our immigrant community.

It was so much fun celebrating with our team at last night's Second Harvest Holiday Food Drive Awards Dinner. County of Santa Cruz won awards in several categories for our multi-department effort to fight hunger in Santa Cruz County.

Last week, Partners for Justice Client Advocates visited Watsonville Law Center, Community Action Board of Santa Cruz County, Monarch Services, Community Bridges, and Second Harvest Food Bank Santa Cruz County to strengthen community partnerships and share info about resources.

On February 11, County of Santa Cruz hosted its second Town Hall to get community feedback on the County's Strategic Plan. Supervisor Manu Koenig welcomed community members to engage with community leaders around safety and justice, health, infrastructure, and equity.

Social Work Supervisor María Rodríguez-Castillo and Chief Investigator Mara Hickey met earlier this month with leaders at @MILPACollective to learn more about how MILPA supports the interpersonal development of youth. Relationships fuel community-based whole person defense.

We were thrilled to join defenders from around the Bay, concerned citizens, and legislators at the Commonwealth Club last night to hear Partners for Justice Executive Director Emily Galvin Almanza talk about her new book, The Price of Mercy with Senator Josh Becker.

Today two of our defenders stepped into a different kind of training: fire extinguisher safety. They learned how to recognize risk early, respond calmly under pressure, and use the right tools to keep a small spark from becoming a crisis. That's public defense in a nutshell!

This week, we welcomed Chief Probation Officer Sandra Mendez to Santa Cruz County. We are looking forward to collaborating with Chief Mendez and her team to reduce incarceration and minimize system involvement for clients struggling with poverty, MH/SUD, and homelessness.

Last Friday, the Board of Supervisors convened to begin shaping the County’s next strategic plan. The depth of thought, vision, creativity, and collaboration in the room was inspiring — especially the many community members who stepped forward to share their ideas.

Director of Holistic Defense Elizabeth Bird recently met with middle school students at Shoreline to talk about holistic defense and the career paths in public defense. A mentor once said, “If you love what you do, you never work a day in your life.” We love what we do. Join us.

On Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, we remember that justice is not just an ideal—it’s a daily responsibility. Public defenders advance Dr. King’s vision ever day by fighting for fairness, humanity, and equal justice for all.

Today we celebrated our first year of CARE Act services in Santa Cruz County. Our collaborative team, including Behavioral Health, County Counsel, Public Defender and the court worked together to create a voluntary, strength-based model we could all support. Proud of this team!

The Public Defender's Office proudly joined Project Hope partners in supporting our community with gift donations, "shopping," and wrapping in North and South County. Happy Holidays to all! It is a pleasure to give back to this community we are so honored to serve.

Thank you, National Association for Public Defense for your consistent, timely, quality support for holistic defense and public defenders. We appreciate you!

Thank you, Workforce Santa Cruz County for today's launch of an 18-month racial equity transformation journey, funded by the James Irvine Foundation." We are honored to be a part of this conversation, as we learn together how to better serve our shared clients.

We are proud to join with community partners to support the Holiday Hope Project, which gives families in need the opportunity to "shop" for presents for their children at sites in North and South County. We are accepting donations at our offices in Watsonville and Santa Cruz.