New Jersey / Office of the Public Defender

Agency file

Office of the Public Defender

Source file: New Jersey — YourMoney State Payroll / ingested Jun 18, 2026

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

In 2024, this agency had 672 employees with median total compensation of $86,980; the highest distinct record was $185,424.

Year: 2024
Total payroll: $60.2M
Employees: 672
Median total: $86,980
Highest record: $185,424

What the records show

Compensation analytics

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

Salary distribution

$223$162,947+

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

How 2024 total compensation is spread across the 672 employees. Each bar is a pay range; taller bars mean more people earn in that range. The amber line marks the median ($86,980) — half earn less, half more. The far-right bar collects the highest earners.

Average pay composition

Base — $87,991 (98%)
Overtime — $40 (0%)
Other — $1,486 (2%)
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

$45,849

$62,261

$86,980

$115,845

$136,555

The pay ladder for this department. Someone at the 90th percentile earns $136,555 — more than 90% of the department; the 10th percentile earns $45,849. The shaded band is the middle half of employees (25th–75th percentile).

Largest job titles

Assistant Deputy Public Defender 2

175 · $109,634

Invstgr 1 Publ Defndr

108 · $74,815

Assistant Deputy Public Defender 3

67 · $138,910

Assistant Deputy Public Defender 1

56 · $85,071

Legal Secretary 2

56 · $47,864

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 2 published years.

Year	Total payroll	Employees	Median pay
2023	$57.6M —	720 —	$79,789 —
2024	$60.2M ▲ 4.5%	672 ▼ 6.7%	$86,980 ▲ 9.0%

Record list

Employees

Page 1

Angela Mcclellan

Senior Clerk Typist/Office of the Public Defender

2024 total comp

$12,875

Sub-department: Office of the Public Defender
Base pay: $9,380
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $3,496
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $12,875
Hire date: null
Union / bargaining unit: Administrative and Clerical Services (Cwa) - Unit A
Pay basis: Annual
Middle name: null

Source-specific fields

As-of Date: Dec 31, 2024
Calendar Quarter: 4
Full Name: Mcclellan, Angela
Paid Section Description: null
Payroll ID: 157649
Record Type: Master
Salary Hourly Rate: $44,340
Year-to-Date Earnings: $12,875

Angela Mcclellan is a Senior Clerk Typist at Office of the Public Defender within Office of the Public Defender. Records show a hire date of null. 2024 total compensation came to $12,875. They are represented by Administrative and Clerical Services (Cwa) - Unit A.

Adam Cohler

Assistant Deputy Public Defender 1/Office of the Public Defender

2023 total comp

$12,016

Sub-department: Office of the Public Defender
Base pay: $9,330
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $2,686
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $12,016
Hire date: null
Union / bargaining unit: Professional Unit (Cwa) - Unit P
Pay basis: Annual
Middle name: L

Source-specific fields

As-of Date: Dec 31, 2023
Calendar Quarter: 4
Full Name: Cohler, Adam L
Paid Section Description: null
Payroll ID: 169715
Record Type: Master
Salary Hourly Rate: $76,095
Year-to-Date Earnings: $12,016

Adam Cohler holds the role of Assistant Deputy Public Defender 1 at Office of the Public Defender within Office of the Public Defender. Their hire date on record is null. In 2023, their total compensation was $12,016. Their bargaining unit is Professional Unit (Cwa) - Unit P.

Marisol Luciano

Legal Secretary 1/Office of the Public Defender

2023 total comp

$10,023

Sub-department: Office of the Public Defender
Base pay: $7,651
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $2,372
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $10,023
Hire date: null
Union / bargaining unit: Administrative and Clerical Services (Cwa) - Unit A
Pay basis: Annual
Middle name: null

Source-specific fields

As-of Date: Dec 31, 2023
Calendar Quarter: 4
Full Name: Luciano, Marisol
Paid Section Description: null
Payroll ID: 103276
Record Type: Master
Salary Hourly Rate: $62,405
Year-to-Date Earnings: $10,023

Marisol Luciano holds the role of Legal Secretary 1 at Office of the Public Defender within Office of the Public Defender. Their hire date on record is null. In 2023, their total compensation was $10,023. They are represented by Administrative and Clerical Services (Cwa) - Unit A.

Jennifer Blum

Assistant Deputy Public Defender 2/Office of the Public Defender

2024 total comp

$9,997

Sub-department: Office of the Public Defender
Base pay: $9,620
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $378
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $9,997
Hire date: null
Union / bargaining unit: Professional Unit (Cwa) - Unit P
Pay basis: Annual
Middle name: M

Source-specific fields

As-of Date: Dec 31, 2024
Calendar Quarter: 4
Full Name: Blum, Jennifer M
Paid Section Description: null
Payroll ID: 160917
Record Type: Master
Salary Hourly Rate: $125,054
Year-to-Date Earnings: $9,997

At Office of the Public Defender, Jennifer Blum serves as a Assistant Deputy Public Defender 2 within Office of the Public Defender. Records show a hire date of null. Their 2024 pay totaled $9,997. Union affiliation: Professional Unit (Cwa) - Unit P.

Rihua Xu

Assistant Deputy Public Defender 2/Office of the Public Defender

2023 total comp

$9,183

Sub-department: Office of the Public Defender
Base pay: $9,183
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $0
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $9,183
Hire date: null
Union / bargaining unit: Professional Unit (Cwa) - Unit P
Pay basis: Annual
Middle name: null

Source-specific fields

As-of Date: Dec 31, 2023
Calendar Quarter: 4
Full Name: Xu, Rihua
Paid Section Description: null
Payroll ID: 133768
Record Type: Master
Salary Hourly Rate: $104,202
Year-to-Date Earnings: $9,183

Rihua Xu works as a Assistant Deputy Public Defender 2 for Office of the Public Defender within Office of the Public Defender. Their hire date on record is null. Rihua earned $9,183 in 2023. Their bargaining unit is Professional Unit (Cwa) - Unit P.

Edwin Grafals

Invstgr 2 Publ Defndr/Office of the Public Defender

2023 total comp

$9,113

Sub-department: Office of the Public Defender
Base pay: $3,789
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $5,323
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $9,113
Hire date: null
Union / bargaining unit: Primary Level Supervisors (Cwa) - Unit R
Pay basis: Annual
Middle name: L

Source-specific fields

As-of Date: Dec 31, 2023
Calendar Quarter: 4
Full Name: Grafals, Edwin L
Paid Section Description: null
Payroll ID: 103274
Record Type: Master
Salary Hourly Rate: $98,900
Year-to-Date Earnings: $9,113

Edwin Grafals holds the role of Invstgr 2 Publ Defndr at Office of the Public Defender within Office of the Public Defender. Their hire date on record is null. In 2023, their total compensation was $9,113. Union affiliation: Primary Level Supervisors (Cwa) - Unit R.

Mary Moreira

Assistant Deputy Public Defender 1/Office of the Public Defender

2023 total comp

$8,561

Sub-department: Office of the Public Defender
Base pay: $7,513
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $1,049
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $8,561
Hire date: null
Union / bargaining unit: Professional Unit (Cwa) - Unit P
Pay basis: Annual
Middle name: null

Source-specific fields

As-of Date: Dec 31, 2023
Calendar Quarter: 4
Full Name: Moreira, Mary
Paid Section Description: null
Payroll ID: 138041
Record Type: Master
Salary Hourly Rate: $89,126
Year-to-Date Earnings: $8,561

At Office of the Public Defender, Mary Moreira serves as a Assistant Deputy Public Defender 1 within Office of the Public Defender. Records show a hire date of null. Their 2023 pay totaled $8,561. Their bargaining unit is Professional Unit (Cwa) - Unit P.

Jillian Elko

Assistant Deputy Public Defender 2/Office of the Public Defender

2024 total comp

$8,257

Sub-department: Office of the Public Defender
Base pay: $4,313
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $3,944
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $8,257
Hire date: null
Union / bargaining unit: Professional Unit (Cwa) - Unit P
Pay basis: Annual
Middle name: R

Source-specific fields

As-of Date: Dec 31, 2024
Calendar Quarter: 4
Full Name: Elko, Jillian R
Paid Section Description: null
Payroll ID: 107399
Record Type: Master
Salary Hourly Rate: $112,150
Year-to-Date Earnings: $8,257

Jillian Elko is a Assistant Deputy Public Defender 2 at Office of the Public Defender within Office of the Public Defender. Records show a hire date of null. 2024 total compensation came to $8,257. Union affiliation: Professional Unit (Cwa) - Unit P.

Danielle Garner

Clerk Typist/Office of the Public Defender

2023 total comp

$7,678

Sub-department: Office of the Public Defender
Base pay: $7,300
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $379
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $7,678
Hire date: null
Union / bargaining unit: Administrative and Clerical Services (Cwa) - Unit A
Pay basis: Annual
Middle name: null

Source-specific fields

As-of Date: Dec 31, 2023
Calendar Quarter: 4
Full Name: Garner, Danielle
Paid Section Description: null
Payroll ID: 149676
Record Type: Master
Salary Hourly Rate: $40,558
Year-to-Date Earnings: $7,678

Danielle Garner holds the role of Clerk Typist at Office of the Public Defender within Office of the Public Defender. Their hire date on record is null. In 2023, their total compensation was $7,678. They are represented by Administrative and Clerical Services (Cwa) - Unit A.