Deputy Public Defender I

Enforce laws and maintain public safety — patrol, respond to incidents, investigate crimes, and make arrests.

80 employees hold this title in Public Defender. Median total compensation for the role is $126,583, below the department median of $178,093.

Employees: 80
Total payroll: $8.2M
Role median: $126,583
Agency median: $178,093
Comparison: Below

What the records show

Role pay distribution

Pay distribution for this role

$16,820$160,740+

Hover a bar for its range; click to filter the list below.

How total compensation varies among the 80 people in this role. Even for one job title, pay differs with seniority, step, overtime, and tenure. Each bar is a pay range; the far-right bar collects the highest earners.

Compare jurisdictions

Deputy Public Defender beyond Los Angeles County

This role is reported in 2 jurisdictions. In Los Angeles County, the median of $246,573 ranks #1 of 2. See Deputy Public Defender across all of Los Angeles County →

Highest-paying jurisdictions for this role

New Jersey

$175,367 · 8

Median total compensation for comparable Deputy Public Defenderroles in other jurisdictions. Titles are matched by normalized name across sources, not identical job classification, and pay is not cost-of-living adjusted. Each bar links to that jurisdiction’s page for the role.

Record list

Employees with this title

Page 1

Ester Mendez

Deputy Public Defender I/Public Defender

2025 total comp

$123,209

Base pay: $89,645
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $8,457
Benefits: $25,107
Total compensation: $123,209

Ester Mendez holds the role of Deputy Public Defender I at Public Defender. In 2025, their total compensation was $123,209.