Ramsey County, Minnesota / Public Defender

Agency file

Public Defender

Source file: Ramsey County, Minnesota — Employee Compensation / ingested Jun 19, 2026

The Public Defender handles legal functions of government — prosecution, legal advice, and representing the state in court.

In 2024, this agency had 1 employees with median total compensation of $34,353; the highest distinct record was $34,353.

Year: 2024
Total payroll: $34.4K
Employees: 1
Median total: $34,353
Highest record: $34,353

What the records show

Compensation analytics

These summaries compare pay within the agency before listing individual records.

Salary distribution

$34,353$34,354+

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

How 2024 total compensation is spread across the 1 employees. Each bar is a pay range; taller bars mean more people earn in that range. The amber line marks the median ($34,353) — half earn less, half more. The far-right bar collects the highest earners.

Average pay composition

Base — $28,031 (82%)
Overtime — $0 (0%)
Other — $6,322 (18%)
Benefits — $0 (0%)

What an average paycheck here is made of — base salary versus overtime, other pay (bonuses, allowances), and benefits. A large overtime or other-pay share means take-home often exceeds base salary.

Pay percentiles

10th

25th

Median

75th

90th

$34,353

The pay ladder for this department. Someone at the 90th percentile earns $34,353 — more than 90% of the department; the 10th percentile earns $34,353. The shaded band is the middle half of employees (25th–75th percentile).

Largest job titles

Assistant Public Defender 3 - Uncl

1 · $34,353

The most common job titles in this department by headcount, with the median total compensation for each. Click a title to see everyone who holds it.

Trend

Year over year

How this department's total payroll, headcount, and median pay changed across the 4 published years.

Year	Total payroll	Employees	Median pay
2021	$1.1M —	11 —	$101,760 —
2022	$894.4K ▼ 21.0%	9 ▼ 18.2%	$81,968 ▼ 19.4%
2023	$600.6K ▼ 32.8%	7 ▼ 22.2%	$75,912 ▼ 7.4%
2024	$34.4K ▼ 94.3%	1 ▼ 85.7%	$34,353 ▼ 54.7%

Record list

Employees

Page 1

Sharon Thompson-Carter

Assistant Public Defender 4 - Uncl/Public Defender

2023 total comp

$149,988

Base pay: $124,411
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $25,577
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $149,988
Hourly rate: $74
Hire date: 1995-05-15
Employment type: Full-Time
Union / bargaining unit: Unr
Full-time equivalent (FTE): 1

Source-specific fields

Dept Name 2: Public Defender/Admin
Earn Code: 905
Empl Record: 0
Pay Status: Retired
Termination Date: Oct 3, 2023

At Public Defender, Sharon Thompson-Carter serves as a Assistant Public Defender 4 - Uncl. Hired in 1995, they have about 28 years of service, working full-time. Their 2023 pay totaled $149,988. Their bargaining unit is Unr.

Leif Carlson

Assistant Public Defender 4 - Uncl/Public Defender

2023 total comp

$142,042

Base pay: $93,831
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $48,211
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $142,042
Hourly rate: $74
Hire date: 1993-10-18
Employment type: Full-Time
Union / bargaining unit: Unr
Full-time equivalent (FTE): 1
Middle name: P

Source-specific fields

Dept Name 2: Public Defender/Admin
Earn Code: 734
Empl Record: 0
Pay Status: Retired
Termination Date: Jul 21, 2023

Leif Carlson holds the role of Assistant Public Defender 4 - Uncl at Public Defender. Their tenure dates to 1993, about 30 years as a full-time employee. In 2023, their total compensation was $142,042. They are represented by Unr.

Carole Finneran

Assistant Public Defender 3 - Uncl/Public Defender

2023 total comp

$118,762

Base pay: $90,838
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $27,924
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $118,762
Hourly rate: $68
Hire date: 1997-11-12
Employment type: Full-Time
Union / bargaining unit: 8Pd
Full-time equivalent (FTE): 1
Middle name: M

Source-specific fields

Dept Name 2: Public Defender/Admin
Earn Code: 734
Empl Record: 0
Pay Status: Retired
Termination Date: Aug 1, 2023

At Public Defender, Carole Finneran serves as a Assistant Public Defender 3 - Uncl. Hired in 1997, they have about 26 years of service, working full-time. Their 2023 pay totaled $118,762. Union affiliation: 8Pd.

Kelley Malone O'Neill

Assistant Public Defender 4 - Uncl/Public Defender

2021 total comp

$101,206

Base pay: $83,804
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $17,402
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $101,206
Hourly rate: $71
Hire date: 1990-01-02
Employment type: Full-Time
Union / bargaining unit: Unr
Full-time equivalent (FTE): 1
Middle name: M

Source-specific fields

Dept Name 2: Public Defender/Admin
Earn Code: 734
Empl Record: 0
Pay Status: Retired
Termination Date: Jul 7, 2021

At Public Defender, Kelley Malone O'Neill serves as a Assistant Public Defender 4 - Uncl. Hired in 1990, they have about 31 years of service, working full-time. Their 2021 pay totaled $101,206. Union affiliation: Unr.

Thomas Donohue

Assistant Public Defender 3 - Uncl/Public Defender

2022 total comp

$75,603

Base pay: $71,535
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $4,068
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $75,603
Hourly rate: $65
Hire date: 1995-09-01
Employment type: Part-Time
Union / bargaining unit: 8Pd
Full-time equivalent (FTE): 0.75
Middle name: L

Source-specific fields

Dept Name 2: Public Defender/Admin
Earn Code: 723
Empl Record: 0
Pay Status: Retired
Termination Date: Sep 9, 2022

Thomas Donohue holds the role of Assistant Public Defender 3 - Uncl at Public Defender. Hired in 1995, they have about 27 years of service as a part-time, 0.75 FTE employee. In 2022, their total compensation was $75,603. Union affiliation: 8Pd.

Kate Courtney

Assistant Public Defender 3 - Uncl/Public Defender

2023 total comp

$73,913

Base pay: $69,435
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $4,479
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $73,913
Hourly rate: $62
Hire date: 1996-05-10
Employment type: Part-Time
Union / bargaining unit: 8Pd
Full-time equivalent (FTE): 0.75

Source-specific fields

Dept Name 2: Public Defender/Admin
Earn Code: 723
Empl Record: 0
Pay Status: Retired
Termination Date: Aug 29, 2023

Kate Courtney works as a Assistant Public Defender 3 - Uncl for Public Defender. Hired in 1996, they have about 27 years of service as a part-time, 0.75 FTE employee. Kate earned $73,913 in 2023. Their bargaining unit is 8Pd.

Thomas Handley

Assistant Public Defender 3 - Uncl/Public Defender

2022 total comp

$50,030

Base pay: $13,005
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $37,025
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $50,030
Hourly rate: $68
Hire date: 1997-11-17
Employment type: Full-Time
Union / bargaining unit: 8Pd
Full-time equivalent (FTE): 1
Middle name: A

Source-specific fields

Dept Name 2: Public Defender/Admin
Earn Code: 734
Empl Record: 0
Pay Status: Retired
Termination Date: Jan 14, 2022

At Public Defender, Thomas Handley serves as a Assistant Public Defender 3 - Uncl. Their tenure dates to 1997, about 25 years, working full-time. Their 2022 pay totaled $50,030. Their bargaining unit is 8Pd.

Ellen Seesel

Assistant Public Defender 3 - Uncl/Public Defender

2024 total comp

$34,353

Base pay: $28,031
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $6,322
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $34,353
Hourly rate: $70
Hire date: 1980-01-02
Employment type: Part-Time
Union / bargaining unit: 8Pd
Full-time equivalent (FTE): 0.5

Source-specific fields

Dept Name 2: Public Defender/Admin
Earn Code: 711
Empl Record: 0
Pay Status: Retired
Termination Date: May 1, 2024

Ellen Seesel works as a Assistant Public Defender 3 - Uncl for Public Defender. Their tenure dates to 1980, about 44 years as a part-time, 0.5 FTE employee. Ellen earned $34,353 in 2024. Union affiliation: 8Pd.

Edith Brown

Assistant Public Defender 3 - Uncl/Public Defender

2023 total comp

$23,198

Base pay: $0
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $23,198
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $23,198
Hourly rate: $68
Hire date: 1997-11-12
Employment type: Full-Time
Union / bargaining unit: 8Pd
Full-time equivalent (FTE): 1
Middle name: M

Source-specific fields

Dept Name 2: Public Defender/Admin
Earn Code: 902
Empl Record: 0
Pay Status: Retired
Termination Date: Sep 1, 2022

Edith Brown holds the role of Assistant Public Defender 3 - Uncl at Public Defender. Their tenure dates to 1997, about 26 years as a full-time employee. In 2023, their total compensation was $23,198. They are represented by 8Pd.

Mark Todd

Assistant Public Defender 3 - Uncl/Public Defender

2021 total comp

$17,772

Base pay: $16,572
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $1,200
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $17,772
Hourly rate: $59
Hire date: 1995-09-01
Employment type: Part-Time
Union / bargaining unit: 8Pd
Full-time equivalent (FTE): 0.5
Middle name: E

Source-specific fields

Dept Name 2: Public Defender/Admin
Earn Code: 723
Empl Record: 0
Pay Status: Retired
Termination Date: Mar 19, 2021

At Public Defender, Mark Todd serves as a Assistant Public Defender 3 - Uncl. They have served since 1995 (about 26 years), working part-time, 0.5 FTE. Their 2021 pay totaled $17,772. They are represented by 8Pd.

Mary Mateer

Assistant Public Defender 3 - Uncl/Public Defender

2023 total comp

$16,817

Base pay: $14,817
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $2,000
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $16,817
Hourly rate: $65
Hire date: 1988-04-01
Employment type: Part-Time
Union / bargaining unit: 8Pd
Full-time equivalent (FTE): 0.5

Source-specific fields

Dept Name 2: Public Defender/Admin
Earn Code: 723
Empl Record: 0
Pay Status: Retired
Termination Date: Feb 28, 2023

At Public Defender, Mary Mateer serves as a Assistant Public Defender 3 - Uncl. Hired in 1988, they have about 35 years of service, working part-time, 0.5 FTE. Their 2023 pay totaled $16,817. Their bargaining unit is 8Pd.