Rhode Island / Public Defender / Assistant Public Defender I
Job-title file
Carry out the duties of this position in support of the agency's public mission.
20 employees hold this title in Public Defender. Median total compensation for the role is $36,211, above the department median of $23,153.
What the records show
How total compensation varies among the 20 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.
Compared with the local labor market
Across all employers in Rhode Island, the median wage for Lawyers — about 1,840 people — is $138,960. Public Defender pays a median base salary of $36,211 for this role, 74% below that figure — below the 10th percentile of local pay for the occupation.
The bar is the range of annual wages for Lawyers across every employer in Rhode Island, from the 10th to the 90th percentile, with the middle 50% highlighted. The marker shows Public Defender’s median base salary for this role. Both figures are base pay only.
And across the country
Nationwide, the median wage for Lawyers — about 754,500 people — is $159,670. Public Defender’s median base salary is 77% below that national figure, below the 10th percentile of pay for the occupation nationally.
Local and national wages differ for reasons beyond how well a job pays — cost of living, the mix of employers, and local demand for the occupation all move the Rhode Island range relative to the national one.
Median total compensation for this role at Public Defender is $36,211, which includes overtime and employer-paid benefits. The benchmark above excludes both, so total compensation is deliberately not compared against it.
Benchmark: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2025). BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) covers all employers in the area — private, non-profit, and government alike — so this is a comparison against the whole local labor market for the occupation, not against private-sector pay. OEWS wages are straight-time pay and exclude overtime, shift differentials, and employer-paid benefits, so the government figure shown here is base pay on the same basis. Total compensation is not comparable to it. Job titles are matched to the closest standard occupation, so the comparison is between similar work rather than an identical job classification.
Compare jurisdictions
This role is reported in 2 jurisdictions. In Rhode Island, the median of $36,211 ranks #2 of 2. See Assistant Public Defender across all of Rhode Island →
Median total compensation for comparable Assistant 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
Page 1
Assistant Public Defender I/Public Defender
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John Cotoia holds the role of Assistant Public Defender I at Public Defender. In 2024, their total compensation was $131,223.
Assistant Public Defender I/Public Defender
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Anne Travers is a Assistant Public Defender I at Public Defender. 2024 total compensation came to $131,223.
Assistant Public Defender I/Public Defender
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Daniel Ciora works as a Assistant Public Defender I for Public Defender. Daniel earned $122,847 in 2024.
Assistant Public Defender I/Public Defender
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Stephen Peltier works as a Assistant Public Defender I for Public Defender. Stephen earned $117,263 in 2024.
Assistant Public Defender I/Public Defender
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Helena Sturtevant holds the role of Assistant Public Defender I at Public Defender. In 2025, their total compensation was $112,189.
Assistant Public Defender I/Public Defender
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Angela Yingling works as a Assistant Public Defender I for Public Defender. Angela earned $111,679 in 2024.
Assistant Public Defender I/Public Defender
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Lucy Kissel works as a Assistant Public Defender I for Public Defender. Lucy earned $95,287 in 2025.
Assistant Public Defender I/Public Defender
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Connor Reardon is a Assistant Public Defender I at Public Defender. 2026 total compensation came to $37,202.
Assistant Public Defender I/Public Defender
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Alexus Bonilla holds the role of Assistant Public Defender I at Public Defender. In 2026, their total compensation was $36,707.
Assistant Public Defender I/Public Defender
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Brittani Mulholland is a Assistant Public Defender I at Public Defender. 2026 total compensation came to $36,211.
Assistant Public Defender I/Public Defender
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Tiffany Davila works as a Assistant Public Defender I for Public Defender. Tiffany earned $36,211 in 2026.
Assistant Public Defender I/Public Defender
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At Public Defender, Chad Stroum serves as a Assistant Public Defender I. Their 2026 pay totaled $35,064.
Assistant Public Defender I/Public Defender
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Nicholas Smalley works as a Assistant Public Defender I for Public Defender. Nicholas earned $34,993 in 2026.
Assistant Public Defender I/Public Defender
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Chester Wilkie Iii is a Assistant Public Defender I at Public Defender. 2026 total compensation came to $34,833.
Assistant Public Defender I/Public Defender
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Piper Pehrson is a Assistant Public Defender I at Public Defender. 2026 total compensation came to $34,628.
Assistant Public Defender I/Public Defender
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At Public Defender, Joshua Soares serves as a Assistant Public Defender I. Their 2026 pay totaled $33,998.
Assistant Public Defender I/Public Defender
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At Public Defender, Colin Roy serves as a Assistant Public Defender I. Their 2026 pay totaled $33,943.
Assistant Public Defender I/Public Defender
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Sean Powers is a Assistant Public Defender I at Public Defender. 2026 total compensation came to $31,887.
Assistant Public Defender I/Public Defender
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At Public Defender, Michael Ewart serves as a Assistant Public Defender I. Their 2026 pay totaled $31,770.
Assistant Public Defender I/Public Defender
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Chelsea Haggerty works as a Assistant Public Defender I for Public Defender. Chelsea earned $31,318 in 2026.