California / State Public Defender

Agency file

State Public Defender

Source file: California — State Employee Compensation (SCO Payroll Data Warehouse, CPRA) / ingested Jul 4, 2026

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

In 2025, this agency had 109 employees with median total compensation of $113,709; the highest distinct record was $224,017.

Year: 2025
Total payroll: $12.9M
Employees: 109
Median total: $113,709
Highest record: $224,017

What the records show

Compensation analytics

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

Salary distribution

$1,796$207,360+

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

How 2025 total compensation is spread across the 109 employees. Each bar is a pay range; taller bars mean more people earn in that range. The amber line marks the median ($113,709) — half earn less, half more. The far-right bar collects the highest earners.

Average pay composition

Base — $114,988 (97%)
Overtime — $11 (0%)
Other — $3,227 (3%)
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

$34,263

$74,538

$113,709

$177,588

$195,268

The pay ladder for this department. Someone at the 90th percentile earns $195,268 — more than 90% of the department; the 10th percentile earns $34,263. The shaded band is the middle half of employees (25th–75th percentile).

Largest job titles

18 · $167,542

16 · $192,971

10 · $186,501

6 · $113,613

Staff Services Manager I

6 · $92,989

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 3 published years.

Year	Total payroll	Employees	Median pay
2023	$11.7M —	104 —	$120,733 —
2024	$12.3M ▲ 5.5%	105 ▲ 1.0%	$108,863 ▼ 9.8%
2025	$12.9M ▲ 4.5%	109 ▲ 3.8%	$113,709 ▲ 4.5%

Compare

Similar departments

Departments elsewhere with the most similar mix of roles — a proxy for the same kind of agency, matched by workforce composition rather than name. Pay is not cost-of-living adjusted.

Office of Administrative Law California71% match
Office of Public Utility Counsel Texas58% match
Public Defender City and County of San Francisco55% match
Public Defender Council, Georgia Georgia53% match
District Attorney Allegheny County, Pennsylvania50% match
Attorney General's Office South Carolina48% match

Record list

Employees

Page 1

Jessica Hawk

Attorney IV/State Public Defender

2024 total comp

$172,280

Base pay: $161,460
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $10,820
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $172,280
Employment type: Full-Time
Union / bargaining unit: R02
Work county: Alameda
Middle name: S

Source-specific fields

Base Pay: $14,128
Cs/csu: Cs
Position Number: 4260155780032
Salary Total: $14,128
Total Pay: $172,280

Jessica Hawk is a Attorney IV at State Public Defender. They work full-time. 2024 total compensation came to $172,280. They are represented by R02.

Hassan Gorguinpour

Attorney Supervisor/State Public Defender

2025 total comp

$170,598

Base pay: $170,398
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $200
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $170,598
Employment type: Full-Time
Union / bargaining unit: S02
Work county: Sacramento

Source-specific fields

Base Pay: $15,404
Cs/csu: Cs
Position Number: 4260155749022
Salary Total: $14,695
Total Pay: $170,598

Hassan Gorguinpour works as a Attorney Supervisor for State Public Defender. Their status is full-time. Hassan earned $170,598 in 2025. Their bargaining unit is S02.

William Whaley

Attorney Supervisor/State Public Defender

2025 total comp

$169,397

Base pay: $169,047
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $350
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $169,397
Employment type: Full-Time
Union / bargaining unit: S02
Work county: Alameda
Middle name: C

Source-specific fields

Base Pay: $15,282
Cs/csu: Cs
Position Number: 4260155749007
Salary Total: $14,701
Total Pay: $169,397

William Whaley holds the role of Attorney Supervisor at State Public Defender. Their status is full-time. In 2025, their total compensation was $169,397. Union affiliation: S02.

Gary Johnston

Attorney Supervisor/State Public Defender

2025 total comp

$169,374

Base pay: $169,174
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $200
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $169,374
Employment type: Full-Time
Union / bargaining unit: S02
Work county: Sacramento
Middle name: D

Source-specific fields

Base Pay: $15,347
Cs/csu: Cs
Position Number: 4260155749021
Salary Total: $14,638
Total Pay: $169,374

Gary Johnston works as a Attorney Supervisor for State Public Defender. Their status is full-time. Gary earned $169,374 in 2025. They are represented by S02.

Lisa Romo

Attorney IV/State Public Defender

2025 total comp

$167,984

Base pay: $140,372
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $27,612
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $167,984
Employment type: Intermittent
Union / bargaining unit: R02
Work county: Alameda
Middle name: M

Source-specific fields

Base Pay: $16,096
Cs/csu: Cs
Position Number: 4260155780901
Salary Total: $93
Total Pay: $167,984

Lisa Romo holds the role of Attorney IV at State Public Defender. Their status is intermittent. In 2025, their total compensation was $167,984. They are represented by R02.