Deason Center Testifies on California Public Defense Staffing Crisis

On May 21, 2026, Deason Center Policy Director Malia Brink testified before the Public Protection Committee of the Alameda County Board of Supervisors on the need to reduce public defense workloads and increase staffing.

Ms. Brink’s testimony focused on the findings of the 2025 report on California Public Defense Workloads and Staffing, which was commissioned by the California legislature. The report showed that public defense attorneys across California represent too many clients in too many cases, and that their excessive workloads threaten the integrity of California’s court system. More than 80% of Chief Public Defenders reported having too few trial attorneys to address clients’ needs. Consequently, lawyers reported not only that they were overwhelmed, but also that they were forced to skip key representational tasks, including communicating with the client, reviewing discovery, and investigating their cases.

At the same time, public defender offices lack appropriate support staffing, requiring attorneys to spend valuable time on work better and more efficiently done by investigators, paralegals, and social workers. Across the state, public defender offices have only about one third of the support staff as their prosecutors’ offices. As a result, support staff services are commonly reserved for only the most severe cases. 

Alameda County public defender Brendon Woods also testified at the hearing. In his testimony, he noted that in the month of April, five attorneys resigned from his office. All of them cited workload and chose to pursue other work “that is not as stressful”. Woods is also seeking additional funding and support for his office. He is requesting an additional $3.7 million for his office over the next four fiscal years to fund additional attorneys, investigators, social workers, and a legal secretary.

You can view the full testimony here: Alameda County Public Protection Committee